UK Pornography Site Visits Falls After Age Checks, But Virtual Private Network Usage Surges, States Regulator
Traffic to pornography platforms in the UK has seen a notable drop since the enforcement of age-checking measures this summer, according to the country's communications regulator. Concurrently, the adoption of specialist software designed to bypass these barriers has risen.
Sharp Fall in Visitor Numbers Following Rule Enforcement
The introduction of age vetting on 25 July resulted in an prompt decline in visits to popular online adult platforms, such as the top site in the UK. Figures shows that visitor numbers to this platform in August were 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.
In total, visitor numbers to the ten most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a significantly reduced level than prior to the end-of-July implementation date. Later data shows this decline in viewing persisted beyond August.
Surge in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Checks
Reacting to the new rules, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can get around location-based restrictions by routing internet traffic through another nation—increased dramatically following 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from around 650,000 users prior to the verification began. However, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has afterwards fallen back, with latest figures standing at around 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for pornography services.
Teenagers Responding to Damaging Material
Elsewhere, the watchdog's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering damaging content online. Steps taken included flagging the material to the platform to blocking the person who posted it.
This survey was conducted prior to new rules took effect that compel platforms to stop children from accessing harmful content, such as material related to self-harm and pornography. The primary way teenagers encountered such content was by looking through a social media timeline, suggesting that algorithms were showing harmful material.
Government Launch Examination of Pornography Legislation
In a related development, the ministers announced it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age.
“The examination will look into the efficacy of the existing law in regarding making illegal, among other things, harmful portrayals of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a justice minister.
Campaigners Call For Stricter Online Regulations
Advocates for better control of adult content have called on the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that encourages child sexual abuse by using young-looking performers portraying children.
Suggested changes to government bills seek to:
- Ban pornography where adults are mimicking children, often recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the crime of making an indecent image of a child to cover material where an adult plays the role of a child.
- Introduce tighter regulation on familial abuse pornography, which research indicates is heavily recommended by platform systems.
- Add additional restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess tools designed to create non-consensual nude images.
- Establish a new, independent oversight agency to perform spot checks on pornography sites and act on reports of unlawful content.
The advocates argue that these measures would ensure the protections that have existed for decades offline finally apply to the digital age.
