🔗 Share this article British Adult Content Site Visits Falls Following Age Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, Reports Watchdog Traffic to adult content sites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop since the roll-out of age-checking measures earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications watchdog. Concurrently, the use of tools designed to bypass these restrictions has surged. Immediate Drop in User Numbers Following Law Implementation The enforcement of age verification on 25 July resulted in an immediate fall in traffic to leading pornography sites, including the most visited provider in the UK. Figures shows that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024. Overall, traffic to the ten top adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than before the late July deadline. Later analysis suggests this downward trend in site visits persisted past August. Surge in VPN Adoption to Evade Restrictions Reacting to the new rules, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass location-based blocks by routing connections via another nation—surged after 25 July. Usage reached a high at over 1.4 million in mid-August, up from approximately 650,000 users prior to the verification were introduced. However, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has afterwards steadily declined, with latest figures standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites. Teenagers Responding to Harmful Material In other findings, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing harmful content on the internet. Actions ranged from reporting the material to the site to muting the person who shared it. This survey was conducted before new rules took effect that require platforms to stop children from accessing dangerous content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way young people came across such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, suggesting that algorithms were serving harmful material. Government Launch Examination of Pornography Laws In a related development, the government announced it would examine the legislation governing pornography to assess whether it is adequate in the modern online world. “The review will investigate the effectiveness of the existing law in regarding making illegal, for example, damaging depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a justice minister. Advocates Push For Stricter Online Controls Campaigners for tighter regulation of online pornography have called on the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that encourages abuse by casting youthful performers dressed as children. Suggested changes to legislation seek to: Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, often filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms. Extend the offence of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an older performer acts the part of a child. Apply tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which research suggests is heavily recommended by platform algorithms. Introduce additional restrictions on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to generate private images without permission. Create a new, separate oversight agency to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and respond to reports of unlawful content. The advocates contend that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have existed for decades in the physical world finally are extended to the digital age.
Traffic to adult content sites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop since the roll-out of age-checking measures earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications watchdog. Concurrently, the use of tools designed to bypass these restrictions has surged. Immediate Drop in User Numbers Following Law Implementation The enforcement of age verification on 25 July resulted in an immediate fall in traffic to leading pornography sites, including the most visited provider in the UK. Figures shows that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024. Overall, traffic to the ten top adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than before the late July deadline. Later analysis suggests this downward trend in site visits persisted past August. Surge in VPN Adoption to Evade Restrictions Reacting to the new rules, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass location-based blocks by routing connections via another nation—surged after 25 July. Usage reached a high at over 1.4 million in mid-August, up from approximately 650,000 users prior to the verification were introduced. However, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has afterwards steadily declined, with latest figures standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites. Teenagers Responding to Harmful Material In other findings, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing harmful content on the internet. Actions ranged from reporting the material to the site to muting the person who shared it. This survey was conducted before new rules took effect that require platforms to stop children from accessing dangerous content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way young people came across such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, suggesting that algorithms were serving harmful material. Government Launch Examination of Pornography Laws In a related development, the government announced it would examine the legislation governing pornography to assess whether it is adequate in the modern online world. “The review will investigate the effectiveness of the existing law in regarding making illegal, for example, damaging depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a justice minister. Advocates Push For Stricter Online Controls Campaigners for tighter regulation of online pornography have called on the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that encourages abuse by casting youthful performers dressed as children. Suggested changes to legislation seek to: Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, often filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms. Extend the offence of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an older performer acts the part of a child. Apply tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which research suggests is heavily recommended by platform algorithms. Introduce additional restrictions on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to generate private images without permission. Create a new, separate oversight agency to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and respond to reports of unlawful content. The advocates contend that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have existed for decades in the physical world finally are extended to the digital age.