UK Adult Content Site Visits Declines Following Age Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, States Watchdog
Visitor numbers to adult content websites in the United Kingdom has decreased markedly after the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, according to the nation's communications regulator. Concurrently, the use of specialist software designed to bypass these restrictions has surged.
Sharp Drop in User Figures After Rule Enforcement
The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July caused an swift reduction in visits to leading online adult platforms, including the top site in the UK. Figures indicates that visitor numbers to this platform in August were 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.
In total, traffic to the 10 top pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a markedly decreased volume than before the late July deadline. Later analysis shows this decline in site visits continued beyond August.
Surge in Virtual Private Network Usage to Evade Checks
Reacting to the new regulations, adoption of VPN software—which can circumvent location-based blocks by routing internet traffic via another country—increased dramatically after 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 users prior to the verification began. However, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since fallen back, with current figures at around 900,000. It clarified that the volume of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for pornography sites.
Young People Responding to Damaging Online Content
Elsewhere, the regulator's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing distressing content on the internet. Steps taken ranged from flagging the material to the platform to muting the user who shared it.
This research was carried out before new rules came into force that require social media companies to stop children from accessing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The most common way young people encountered such content was by looking through a platform feed, indicating that recommendation systems were showing inappropriate material.
Government Announce Examination of Pornography Laws
Separately, the government stated it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to assess whether it is adequate in the ever-developing online world.
“The examination will investigate the efficacy of the current law in regarding criminalising, among other things, damaging depictions of incest and any types of pornography which encourage the abuse of children,” said a government official.
Campaigners Push For Tighter Online Regulations
Advocates for tighter control of online pornography have urged the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that appears to promote child sexual abuse by casting youthful adults portraying children.
Suggested amendments to government bills aim to:
- Prohibit pornography where adults are impersonating children, sometimes recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an adult plays the role of a child.
- Introduce stricter regulation on familial abuse pornography, which research indicates is heavily recommended by platform algorithms.
- Introduce further restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to own tools designed to create private images without permission.
- Establish a new, independent oversight agency to conduct inspections on adult platforms and act on reports of illegal content.
The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for years in the physical world finally apply to the digital age.
