UK Adult Content Site Visits Declines Following Age Checks, But Virtual Private Network Usage Surges, Reports Regulator

Visitor numbers to pornography platforms in the UK has decreased markedly since the introduction of mandatory age verification this summer, as reported by the nation's communications regulator. Simultaneously, the adoption of tools designed to bypass these blocks has surged.

Sharp Fall in User Numbers Following Law Enforcement

The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July caused an immediate reduction in traffic to leading pornography sites, such as the top provider in the UK. Data indicates that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.

Overall, visitor numbers to the 10 most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a markedly decreased volume than before the end-of-July deadline. Subsequent data shows this downward trend in viewing persisted beyond August.

Surge in VPN Usage to Evade Checks

Reacting to the new regulations, use of VPN software—which can get around location-based blocks by routing internet traffic via another country—more than doubled after 25 July.

User numbers peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 people prior to the checks began. Subsequently, the regulator stated that VPN usage has afterwards steadily declined, with current figures at approximately 900,000. It added that the level of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for adult services.

Young People Responding to Damaging Online Content

In other findings, the watchdog's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing damaging content online. Actions ranged from reporting the content to the site to muting the person who shared it.

This research was carried out before new regulations came into force that require social media companies to prevent children from accessing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way young people came across such content was by scrolling through a social media timeline, indicating that algorithms were showing harmful material.

Government Launch Examination of Adult Content Legislation

In a related development, the ministers announced it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to assess whether it is effective in the modern online world.

“The examination will look into the effectiveness of the existing law in regarding criminalising, among other things, harmful portrayals of incest and any forms of pornography which encourage child sexual abuse,” stated a government official.

Advocates Call For Stricter Digital Regulations

Advocates for better regulation of adult content have urged the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote child sexual abuse by using youthful adults portraying children.

Proposed amendments to legislation aim to:

• Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, often recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
• Extend the offence of making an indecent image of a child to include material where an adult plays the role of a child.
• Introduce stricter controls on familial abuse pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by platform algorithms.
• Add additional controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to possess tools 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 unlawful content.

The advocates argue that these measures would ensure the protections that have existed for years in the physical world finally are extended to the digital age.