UK Pornography Site Visits Declines Following Identity Verifications, Yet VPN Use Surges, Reports Regulator
Visitor numbers to adult content websites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop since the enforcement of age-checking measures this summer, as reported by the country's communications regulator. Concurrently, the adoption of tools designed to dodge these restrictions has increased.
Immediate Drop in Visitor Numbers Following Rule Enforcement
The introduction of age verification on 25 July caused an prompt reduction in traffic to leading pornography sites, such as the most visited site in the UK. Data shows that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million compared to the equivalent month in 2024.
Overall, visitor numbers to the ten most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a markedly decreased volume than before the late July deadline. Subsequent analysis shows this downward trend in viewing continued beyond August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Usage to Bypass Checks
Reacting to the new regulations, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can circumvent geographic restrictions by masking internet traffic through another nation—surged after 25 July.
Usage reached a high at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 users prior to the verification were introduced. However, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has since decreased, with latest numbers at approximately 900,000. It added that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for adult services.
Teenagers Responding to Damaging Material
Elsewhere, the watchdog's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing distressing content on the internet. Actions included flagging the content to the platform to blocking the user who posted it.
This research was carried out before new rules took effect that compel platforms to prevent children from seeing harmful content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The primary way young people encountered such content was by looking through a platform timeline, indicating that recommendation systems were showing inappropriate material.
Ministers Launch Examination of Pornography Legislation
In a related development, the government stated it would examine the legislation governing pornography to consider whether it is adequate in the ever-developing digital age.
“The examination will look into the effectiveness of the existing law in relation to making illegal, among other things, damaging portrayals of incest and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official.
Campaigners Call For Tighter Online Regulations
Advocates for tighter control of adult content have called on the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages child sexual abuse by casting young-looking performers portraying children.
Proposed amendments to legislation seek to:
- Prohibit pornography where adults are mimicking children, sometimes recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the offence of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
- Apply tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which research indicates is heavily recommended by platform systems.
- Add further controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to create non-consensual nude images.
- Create a new, separate oversight agency to perform spot checks on adult platforms and respond to reports of illegal content.
The campaigners contend that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have existed for decades in the physical world finally apply to the digital age.
