British Pornography Traffic Declines After Identity Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, Reports Regulator
Visitor numbers to pornography sites in the UK has seen a notable drop after the roll-out of age-checking measures this summer, as reported by the country's communications authority. Simultaneously, the usage of tools designed to circumvent these barriers has risen.
Sharp Fall in User Numbers After Law Enforcement
The introduction of age vetting on 25 July led to an prompt decline in traffic to major pornography sites, including the leading provider in the UK. Figures shows that user traffic to this site in August reached 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.
In total, traffic to the ten most-visited adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a “lower level” than prior to the late July deadline. Subsequent data suggests this decline in viewing persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in VPN Adoption to Bypass Restrictions
Reacting to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass geographic restrictions by masking connections through another nation—surged after 25 July.
User numbers reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, up from around 650,000 people prior to the verification began. Subsequently, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has since fallen back, with latest numbers standing at around 900,000. It clarified that the level of daily VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites.
Teenagers Responding to Harmful Online Content
In other findings, the regulator's annual study found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering distressing content on the internet. Actions included reporting the material to the site to blocking the person who posted it.
This research was conducted before new regulations took effect that compel platforms to prevent children from seeing dangerous content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way young people encountered such content was by scrolling through a platform timeline, indicating that algorithms were showing inappropriate material.
Ministers Launch Examination of Adult Content Laws
Separately, the government stated it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to consider whether it is adequate in the ever-developing digital age.
“The review will investigate the efficacy of the existing law in relation to criminalising, for example, damaging depictions of incest and any forms of pornography which encourage the abuse of children,” stated a justice minister.
Advocates Push For Tighter Online Controls
Advocates for tighter regulation of adult content have urged the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by casting youthful adults portraying children.
Proposed changes to government bills seek to:
- Prohibit pornography where performers are mimicking children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the offence of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an adult plays the role of a child.
- Apply stricter controls on familial abuse pornography, which research suggests is heavily recommended by site algorithms.
- Add further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess tools designed to create non-consensual nude images.
- Create a new, independent oversight agency to perform inspections on pornography sites and act on reports of unlawful content.
The campaigners argue that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for decades offline finally apply to the online sphere.
