British Pornography Site Visits Declines Following Identity Checks, But Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, Reports Watchdog

Access to adult content websites in the UK has seen a notable drop since the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, as reported by the nation's communications authority. At the same time, the use of tools designed to bypass these barriers has increased.

Sharp Fall in User Numbers Following Rule Implementation

The enforcement of age verification on 25 July resulted in an prompt fall in traffic to leading online adult platforms, including the top provider in the UK. Data shows that visitor numbers to this site in August were 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million compared to the equivalent month in 2024.

Overall, visitor numbers to the ten most-visited adult services in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than before the late July deadline. Subsequent data shows this decline in viewing continued past August.

Surge in VPN Usage to Bypass Restrictions

In response to the new regulations, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can get around location-based blocks by masking connections through another country—increased dramatically after 25 July.

Usage reached a high at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from around 650,000 people prior to the checks were introduced. Subsequently, the regulator stated that VPN usage has since steadily declined, with latest numbers standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for adult services.

Teenagers Taking Action to Harmful Online Content

Elsewhere, the watchdog's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing distressing content on the internet. Steps taken included flagging the material to the site to blocking the user who posted it.

This survey was carried out before new regulations came into force that require platforms to stop children from seeing dangerous content, including material related to self-harm and pornography. The primary way young people encountered such content was by looking through a social media timeline, suggesting that algorithms were showing inappropriate material.

Government Launch Examination of Adult Content Legislation

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

“The examination will look into the efficacy of the existing law in regarding criminalising, for example, harmful portrayals of incest and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official.

Advocates Push For Stricter Digital Controls

Campaigners for tighter regulation of adult content have called on 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 portraying children.

Suggested amendments to government bills seek to:

• Ban pornography where performers are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the crime of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an adult acts the part of a child.
• Apply stricter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which research indicates is often promoted by platform systems.
• Add additional controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to possess tools designed to generate private images without permission.
• Establish a new, independent oversight agency to conduct inspections on adult platforms and respond to complaints of illegal content.

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