UK Pornography Site Visits Falls Following Age Verifications, Yet Virtual Private Network Use Spikes, Reports Watchdog
Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the UK has decreased markedly after the introduction of age-checking measures earlier this year, as reported by the country's communications watchdog. At the same time, the use of tools designed to dodge these restrictions has risen.
Sharp Fall in User Numbers Following Law Enforcement
The introduction of age vetting on 25 July led to an swift decline in visits to leading pornography sites, including the top provider in the UK. Figures indicates that user traffic to this site in August were 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.
In total, visitor numbers to the ten most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a “lower level” than prior to the end-of-July implementation date. Later data shows this decline in viewing continued past August.
Surge in VPN Adoption to Bypass Checks
Reacting to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass geographic restrictions by masking internet traffic through another nation—increased dramatically following 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from approximately 650,000 people before the checks began. However, the regulator stated that VPN usage has since decreased, with latest figures standing at approximately 900,000. It added that the volume of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites.
Teenagers Taking Action to Harmful Online Content
Elsewhere, the regulator's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing damaging content on the internet. Actions ranged from flagging the content to the site to muting the user who posted it.
This survey was carried out before new rules took effect that require platforms to prevent children from seeing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and pornography. The primary way young people encountered such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, suggesting that algorithms were serving harmful material.
Ministers Launch Review of Adult Content Legislation
In a related development, the government stated it would examine the legislation relating to pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern online world.
“The examination will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in relation to making illegal, for example, harmful depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a justice minister.
Advocates Push For Tighter Online Controls
Campaigners for tighter control of online pornography have urged the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that appears to promote child sexual abuse by casting young-looking performers dressed as children.
Proposed changes to government bills seek to:
- Ban pornography where performers are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in environments like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of creating an indecent image of a child to cover material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
- Apply tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is often promoted by site systems.
- Add additional restrictions on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an offence to possess tools designed to generate private images without permission.
- Establish a new, separate oversight agency to conduct inspections on adult platforms and respond to complaints of illegal content.
The advocates contend that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have existed for decades in the physical world finally apply to the digital age.
