UK Pornography Site Visits Declines Following Identity Checks, Yet Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, Reports Watchdog
Visitor numbers to pornography sites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop since the enforcement of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications regulator. At the same time, the adoption of tools designed to bypass these blocks has increased.
Sharp Fall in User Figures After Rule Implementation
The introduction of age verification on 25 July led to an prompt decline in visits to popular pornography sites, including the leading site in the UK. Data reveals that visitor numbers to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
In total, traffic to the 10 top pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a significantly reduced level than prior to the late July implementation date. Subsequent data indicates this decline in viewing continued beyond August.
Surge in VPN Usage to Evade Restrictions
Reacting to the new rules, use of VPN software—which can circumvent location-based restrictions by masking internet traffic via another country—surged after 25 July.
User numbers peaked at over 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 people prior to the checks began. However, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since decreased, with latest numbers standing at around 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography services.
Teenagers Responding to Harmful Online Content
In other findings, the watchdog's report revealed that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering distressing content on the internet. Steps taken ranged from flagging the material to the site to muting the user who posted it.
This survey was carried out prior to new regulations came into force that require platforms to prevent children from seeing dangerous content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way young people encountered such content was by looking through a platform timeline, indicating that recommendation systems were showing inappropriate material.
Ministers Launch Review of Adult Content Legislation
Separately, the ministers announced it would review the criminal law governing pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern online world.
“The review will investigate the efficacy of the existing law in relation to criminalising, for example, damaging portrayals of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a justice minister.
Advocates 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 includes content featuring incest scenes or that encourages child sexual abuse by casting youthful performers portraying children.
Proposed amendments to legislation seek to:
- Ban pornography where adults are impersonating children, sometimes recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the offence of creating an indecent image of a child to cover material where an adult acts the part of a child.
- Introduce stricter controls on familial abuse pornography, which studies indicates is heavily recommended by site systems.
- Add further controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to possess tools designed to generate private images without permission.
- Establish a new, independent regulatory body to perform spot checks on adult platforms and respond to reports of unlawful content.
The campaigners contend that these steps would ensure the protections that have existed for years in the physical world finally are extended to the online sphere.
