UK Adult Content Site Visits Declines Following Identity Checks, Yet Virtual Private Network Use Surges, Reports Watchdog

Visitor numbers to pornography platforms in the UK has decreased markedly after the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications watchdog. Concurrently, the usage of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has surged.

Sharp Fall in User Numbers Following Rule Implementation

The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July caused an prompt decline in visits to leading pornography sites, such as the most visited site in the UK. Data reveals that user traffic to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.

In total, traffic to the 10 most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a “lower level” than prior to the late July implementation date. Subsequent data indicates this slump in site visits persisted past August.

Surge in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Bypass Checks

In response to the new regulations, use of VPN software—which can circumvent location-based blocks by routing internet traffic via another country—increased dramatically following 25 July.

User numbers peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 people before the checks began. However, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has afterwards decreased, with latest figures at approximately 900,000. It added that the level of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for adult services.

Teenagers Taking Action to Harmful Online Content

Elsewhere, the watchdog's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering damaging content on the internet. Actions ranged from reporting the content to the site to blocking the person who posted it.

This research was conducted prior to new rules came into force that require platforms to prevent children from accessing harmful content, including material related to self-harm and adult material. The most common way teenagers encountered such content was by looking through a social media timeline, suggesting that recommendation systems were serving inappropriate material.

Government Launch Examination of Pornography Laws

In a related development, the ministers announced it would review the legislation governing pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern online world.

“The review will look into the efficacy of the existing law in regarding making illegal, among other things, harmful portrayals of incest and any types of pornography which encourage child sexual abuse,” stated a government official.

Campaigners Call For Stricter Digital Regulations

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

Suggested amendments to legislation aim to:

• Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, often filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the crime of making an indecent image of a child to include material where an adult plays the role of a child.
• Introduce tighter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies indicates is often promoted by platform algorithms.
• Add further controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own tools designed to generate private images without permission.
• Create a new, independent regulatory body to perform spot checks on pornography sites and act on reports of illegal content.

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