UK Pornography Site Visits Falls Following Age Checks, But Virtual Private Network Use Surges, States Regulator

Visitor numbers to adult content platforms in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop after the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, according to the nation's communications authority. Concurrently, the usage of specialist software designed to bypass these barriers has increased.

Immediate Fall in User Figures Following Law Enforcement

The enforcement of age verification on 25 July resulted in an swift fall in traffic to popular online adult platforms, including the most visited site in the UK. Data reveals that visitor numbers to this platform in August stood at 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.

In total, visitor numbers to the ten top pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than before the end-of-July deadline. Later analysis indicates this downward trend in site visits persisted past August.

Surge in VPN Adoption to Bypass Checks

Reacting to the new rules, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass location-based restrictions by masking internet traffic via another nation—increased dramatically after 25 July.

User numbers reached a high at over 1.4 million in mid-August, up from approximately 650,000 users before the checks were introduced. Subsequently, the regulator noted that VPN usage has afterwards decreased, with latest figures standing at around 900,000. It added that the level of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for pornography services.

Young People Taking Action to Damaging Online Content

Elsewhere, the regulator's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing harmful content on the internet. Steps taken ranged from flagging the content to the platform to muting the person who posted it.

This research was carried out before new regulations took effect that compel platforms to prevent children from accessing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way young people encountered such content was by looking through a social media feed, suggesting that algorithms were showing inappropriate material.

Ministers Launch Examination of Pornography Laws

In a related development, the government stated it would examine the legislation governing pornography to consider whether it is adequate in the ever-developing digital age.

“The examination will investigate the efficacy of the existing law in relation to making illegal, for example, damaging portrayals of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official.

Advocates Call For Tighter Digital Regulations

Campaigners for better regulation of online pornography have urged the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages child sexual abuse by using youthful adults dressed as children.

Proposed amendments to government bills seek to:

• Prohibit pornography where adults are impersonating children, often filmed in environments like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the crime of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an adult plays the role of a child.
• Apply tighter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which research suggests is often promoted by site algorithms.
• Add further restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to own software designed to generate private images without permission.
• Create a new, independent regulatory body to conduct spot checks on adult platforms and act on complaints of illegal content.

The advocates contend that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for decades offline finally apply to the online sphere.