British Pornography Traffic Falls Following Identity Verifications, But VPN Use Surges, Reports Regulator

Access to adult content sites in the UK has seen a notable drop after the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, according to the country's communications watchdog. At the same time, the adoption of specialist software designed to dodge these restrictions has surged.

Sharp Drop in User Numbers Following Rule Enforcement

The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an prompt decline in visits to leading online adult platforms, including the most visited site in the UK. Data reveals that user traffic to this platform in August stood at 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.

Overall, visitor numbers to the 10 top pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a “lower level” than prior to the end-of-July implementation date. Subsequent data suggests this slump in site visits continued past August.

Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Restrictions

Reacting to the new rules, use of VPN software—which can get around location-based blocks by masking internet traffic through another nation—surged following 25 July.

Usage peaked at over 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 users before the verification began. However, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has since steadily declined, with latest figures standing at around 900,000. It added that the volume of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for pornography sites.

Young People Responding to Harmful Online Content

Elsewhere, the regulator's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing damaging content online. Actions ranged from flagging the content to the site to muting the person who posted it.

This survey was carried out before new rules came into force that compel platforms to stop children from seeing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The most common way teenagers came across such content was by scrolling through a social media timeline, suggesting that recommendation systems were showing inappropriate material.

Ministers Announce Review of Adult Content Legislation

Separately, the government announced it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to assess whether it is effective in the ever-developing digital age.

“The review will look into the effectiveness of the current law in regarding criminalising, for example, harmful depictions of familial abuse and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a government official.

Advocates Push For Stricter Digital Controls

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

Suggested amendments to government bills seek to:

• Prohibit pornography where adults are mimicking children, sometimes recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the offence of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an adult plays the role of a child.
• Apply tighter controls on familial abuse pornography, which studies suggests is often promoted by site algorithms.
• Add further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to create private images without permission.
• Establish a new, separate oversight agency to perform inspections on adult platforms and respond to complaints of illegal content.

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