British Pornography Site Visits Falls Following Age Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Use Surges, Reports Watchdog
Visitor numbers to pornography platforms in the United Kingdom has fallen significantly after the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, according to the country's communications authority. At the same time, the usage of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has risen.
Sharp Drop in User Numbers After Law Enforcement
The enforcement of age verification on 25 July resulted in an prompt reduction in visits to major pornography sites, including the top site in the UK. Figures reveals that user traffic to this platform in August stood at 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
In total, traffic to the ten top adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a significantly reduced level than before the end-of-July deadline. Later analysis shows this slump in viewing continued beyond August.
Sharp Increase in VPN Adoption to Evade Checks
In response to the new regulations, use of VPN software—which can get around location-based blocks by masking connections via another nation—surged after 25 July.
Usage peaked at over 1.4 million in mid-August, rising from approximately 650,000 users before the checks were introduced. However, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has afterwards decreased, with current numbers at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography services.
Teenagers Responding to Harmful Online Content
Elsewhere, the watchdog's report revealed that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after encountering damaging content online. Steps taken ranged from reporting the content to the platform to blocking the user who posted it.
This survey was conducted prior to new regulations came into force that compel platforms to prevent children from accessing dangerous content, including material related to self-harm and pornography. The most common way teenagers came across such content was by scrolling through a social media timeline, indicating that recommendation systems were showing harmful material.
Ministers Announce Examination of Pornography Legislation
In a related development, the government stated it would examine the legislation relating to pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern online world.
“The review will look into the effectiveness of the existing law in regarding criminalising, among other things, damaging portrayals of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” said a justice minister.
Advocates Call For Stricter Online Regulations
Campaigners for better control of adult content have urged the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote child sexual abuse by casting young-looking adults dressed as children.
Suggested amendments to legislation seek to:
- Prohibit pornography where adults are mimicking children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the offence of creating an indecent image of a child to cover material where an adult acts the part of a child.
- Introduce tighter controls on familial abuse pornography, which studies indicates is often promoted by site algorithms.
- Add further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to own tools designed to create private images without permission.
- Create a new, independent oversight agency to perform spot checks on pornography sites and act on complaints of illegal content.
The campaigners argue that these measures would ensure the protections that have been enforced for decades offline finally apply to the online sphere.
