British Pornography Site Visits Falls Following Age Checks, But VPN Use Surges, States Watchdog
Access to adult content websites in the UK has decreased markedly after the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, according to the country's communications watchdog. At the same time, the use of tools designed to circumvent these blocks has risen.
Immediate Drop in Visitor Figures Following Law Implementation
The introduction of age verification on 25 July resulted in an swift reduction in traffic to leading online adult platforms, including the leading provider in the UK. Data shows that user traffic to this platform in August were 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
Overall, traffic to the 10 top pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a markedly decreased volume than before the end-of-July deadline. Later analysis indicates this downward trend in viewing persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in VPN Adoption to Bypass Checks
Reacting to the new regulations, adoption of VPN software—which can circumvent location-based blocks by masking internet traffic through another nation—increased dramatically after 25 July.
Usage peaked at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 users before the verification were introduced. However, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since fallen back, with latest figures standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for adult services.
Young People Responding to Damaging Online Content
In other findings, the regulator's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing damaging content online. Steps taken included flagging the material to the platform to blocking the user who posted it.
This research was conducted before new rules took effect that compel social media companies to stop children from seeing dangerous content, including material related to suicide and adult material. The most common way teenagers came across such content was by looking through a social media timeline, indicating that recommendation systems were serving harmful material.
Government Announce Review of Pornography Laws
Separately, the government announced it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to assess whether it is effective in the ever-developing online world.
“The examination will look into the effectiveness of the existing law in regarding making illegal, for example, harmful depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a justice minister.
Campaigners Push For Tighter Digital Controls
Advocates for better regulation of online pornography have urged the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by casting young-looking performers portraying children.
Proposed amendments to legislation aim to:
- Ban pornography where performers are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of creating an indecent image of a child to cover material where an older performer plays the role of a child.
- Introduce tighter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies indicates is heavily recommended by site algorithms.
- Add additional controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
- Create a new, independent oversight agency to conduct inspections on pornography sites and act on complaints of illegal content.
The advocates argue that these steps would ensure the protections that have existed for years offline finally are extended to the online sphere.
