🔗 Share this article UK Adult Content Site Visits Falls After Identity Checks, But VPN Usage Spikes, States Watchdog Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the UK has seen a notable drop after the enforcement of mandatory age verification this summer, according to the country's communications regulator. Concurrently, the usage of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has increased. Immediate Fall in Visitor Figures After Law Enforcement The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an prompt reduction in visits to popular online adult platforms, including the most visited site in the UK. Figures indicates that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024. Overall, visitor numbers to the ten top pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than prior to the end-of-July deadline. Later analysis suggests this slump in viewing continued beyond August. Sharp Increase in VPN Usage to Bypass Checks Reacting to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can circumvent geographic blocks by routing connections via another country—surged following 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 stated that VPN usage has afterwards steadily declined, with latest numbers standing at around 900,000. It added that the level of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for adult services. Teenagers Taking Action to Harmful Online Content In other findings, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing harmful content online. Actions included flagging 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 harmful content, such as material related to self-harm and pornography. The primary way teenagers came across such content was by looking through a social media feed, indicating that algorithms were serving harmful material. Government Launch Review of Pornography Legislation Separately, the ministers announced it would review the legislation relating to pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age. “The examination will investigate the efficacy of the current law in regarding making illegal, among other things, damaging depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which encourage the abuse of children,” stated a government official. Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Controls Advocates for better regulation of online pornography have urged the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that encourages abuse by using young-looking performers portraying children. Suggested changes to legislation seek to: Prohibit pornography where performers are mimicking children, sometimes recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms. Broaden the crime of making 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 research suggests is heavily recommended by platform algorithms. Add further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess tools designed to create non-consensual nude images. Create a new, independent regulatory body to perform inspections on pornography sites and respond to reports of unlawful content. The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have existed for years offline finally are extended to the digital age.
Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the UK has seen a notable drop after the enforcement of mandatory age verification this summer, according to the country's communications regulator. Concurrently, the usage of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has increased. Immediate Fall in Visitor Figures After Law Enforcement The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an prompt reduction in visits to popular online adult platforms, including the most visited site in the UK. Figures indicates that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024. Overall, visitor numbers to the ten top pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than prior to the end-of-July deadline. Later analysis suggests this slump in viewing continued beyond August. Sharp Increase in VPN Usage to Bypass Checks Reacting to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can circumvent geographic blocks by routing connections via another country—surged following 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 stated that VPN usage has afterwards steadily declined, with latest numbers standing at around 900,000. It added that the level of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for adult services. Teenagers Taking Action to Harmful Online Content In other findings, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing harmful content online. Actions included flagging 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 harmful content, such as material related to self-harm and pornography. The primary way teenagers came across such content was by looking through a social media feed, indicating that algorithms were serving harmful material. Government Launch Review of Pornography Legislation Separately, the ministers announced it would review the legislation relating to pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age. “The examination will investigate the efficacy of the current law in regarding making illegal, among other things, damaging depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which encourage the abuse of children,” stated a government official. Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Controls Advocates for better regulation of online pornography have urged the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that encourages abuse by using young-looking performers portraying children. Suggested changes to legislation seek to: Prohibit pornography where performers are mimicking children, sometimes recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms. Broaden the crime of making 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 research suggests is heavily recommended by platform algorithms. Add further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess tools designed to create non-consensual nude images. Create a new, independent regulatory body to perform inspections on pornography sites and respond to reports of unlawful content. The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have existed for years offline finally are extended to the digital age.