UK Pornography Traffic Falls Following Age Checks, But VPN Usage Spikes, States Watchdog

Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop since the roll-out of mandatory age verification this summer, as reported by the country's communications authority. Concurrently, the adoption of specialist software designed to bypass these blocks has risen.

Immediate Drop in User Numbers After Rule Implementation

The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July caused an prompt decline in traffic to leading online adult platforms, including the top site in the UK. Data indicates that visitor numbers to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million compared to the equivalent month in 2024.

Overall, traffic to the ten top pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than before the end-of-July implementation date. Subsequent analysis suggests this downward trend in viewing persisted beyond August.

Sharp Increase in VPN Usage to Bypass Checks

Reacting to the new regulations, use of VPN software—which can circumvent location-based restrictions by masking internet traffic via another nation—increased dramatically following 25 July.

Usage peaked at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 users before the verification were introduced. Subsequently, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has since decreased, with current figures standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites.

Young People Taking Action to Damaging Material

In other findings, the regulator's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering harmful content on the internet. Actions included reporting the content to the platform to blocking the person who shared it.

This survey was carried out prior to new regulations came into force that compel social media companies to prevent children from accessing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The primary way teenagers encountered such content was by looking through a social media feed, suggesting that recommendation systems were showing inappropriate material.

Ministers Launch Review of Adult Content Legislation

Separately, the ministers stated it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to assess whether it is adequate in the modern online world.

“The examination will look into the effectiveness of the existing law in regarding making illegal, among other things, damaging portrayals of incest and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official.

Advocates Call For Tighter Digital Controls

Advocates for better regulation of adult content have urged the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that encourages abuse by using young-looking adults portraying children.

Proposed amendments to government bills seek to:

• Prohibit pornography where adults are mimicking children, often recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the offence of creating an indecent image of a child to include material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
• Apply stricter controls on familial abuse pornography, which research suggests is often promoted by site systems.
• Add further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to own software designed to generate private images without permission.
• Create a new, separate oversight agency to conduct inspections on pornography sites and respond to reports of unlawful content.

The advocates argue that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for decades offline finally are extended to the online sphere.