UK Pornography Traffic Declines After Age Checks, Yet VPN Usage Surges, States Watchdog
Traffic to adult content sites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop after the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications watchdog. Concurrently, the use of specialist software designed to dodge these restrictions has risen.
Immediate Drop in Visitor Numbers Following Law Implementation
The introduction of age vetting on 25 July caused an swift decline in visits to major online adult platforms, such as the top provider in the UK. Data indicates that user traffic to this platform in August stood at 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.
Overall, traffic to the ten most-visited adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a “lower level” than prior to the end-of-July deadline. Later analysis suggests this slump in viewing persisted beyond August.
Surge in Virtual Private Network Usage to Evade Checks
Reacting to the new rules, use of VPN software—which can circumvent location-based restrictions by masking connections through another nation—surged following 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, up from approximately 650,000 people prior to the checks began. Subsequently, the regulator stated that VPN usage has afterwards fallen back, with current figures at approximately 900,000. It added that the volume of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography services.
Young People Taking Action to Damaging Material
Elsewhere, the regulator's annual study revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing harmful content online. Steps taken ranged from flagging the content to the platform to muting the person who shared it.
This survey was conducted prior to new regulations took effect that require social media companies to prevent children from seeing harmful content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The primary way teenagers encountered such content was by scrolling through a platform timeline, indicating that algorithms were serving inappropriate material.
Government Announce Review of Adult Content Legislation
In a related development, the government announced it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to consider whether it is effective in the ever-developing online world.
“The review will investigate the effectiveness of the existing law in relation to making illegal, among other things, damaging depictions of incest and any types of pornography which encourage the abuse of children,” stated a justice minister.
Advocates Push For Tighter Online Regulations
Advocates for better control of online pornography have urged the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that appears to promote abuse by using youthful performers portraying children.
Suggested amendments to legislation seek to:
- Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the offence of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
- Apply stricter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies indicates is heavily recommended by platform algorithms.
- Introduce further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to own tools designed to create private images without permission.
- Create a new, independent oversight agency to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and act on reports of illegal content.
The campaigners contend that these steps would ensure the protections that have been enforced for years offline finally apply to the digital age.
