British Pornography Traffic Declines Following Age Checks, Yet VPN Usage Spikes, Reports Watchdog
Traffic to adult content sites in the UK has fallen significantly since the enforcement of mandatory age verification this summer, as reported by the nation's communications authority. At the same time, the usage of tools designed to dodge these blocks has risen.
Sharp Drop in User Numbers Following Rule Enforcement
The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July led to an prompt decline in traffic to leading online adult platforms, including the leading site in the UK. Figures reveals that user traffic to this platform in August were 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million compared to the equivalent month in 2024.
Overall, visitor numbers to the ten top adult services in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than prior to the end-of-July implementation date. Later data shows this decline in viewing continued beyond August.
Surge in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Bypass Restrictions
In response to the new rules, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass geographic restrictions by routing connections via another nation—increased dramatically following 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from around 650,000 people prior to the verification were introduced. However, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since decreased, with latest figures standing at around 900,000. It clarified that the volume of daily VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites.
Young People Responding to Harmful Material
In other findings, the watchdog's report found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after encountering distressing content online. Steps taken included flagging the content to the platform to muting the user who posted it.
This research was conducted before new regulations came into force that compel platforms to stop children from accessing harmful content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The primary way young people encountered such content was by scrolling through a platform timeline, indicating that algorithms were showing inappropriate material.
Ministers Launch Review of Pornography Legislation
In a related development, the ministers announced it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the ever-developing digital age.
“The review will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in regarding making illegal, among other things, harmful portrayals of familial abuse and any types of pornography which encourage child sexual abuse,” said a government official.
Campaigners Call For Tighter Online Regulations
Campaigners for better regulation of online pornography have urged the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that encourages abuse by casting youthful performers dressed as children.
Proposed changes to legislation aim to:
- Ban pornography where adults are mimicking children, sometimes filmed in environments like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the crime of creating an indecent image of a child to include material where an adult acts the part of a child.
- Introduce stricter regulation on familial abuse pornography, which research indicates is often promoted by platform algorithms.
- Add additional controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an offence to possess tools designed to create private images without permission.
- Create a new, separate regulatory body to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and respond to reports of unlawful content.
The advocates contend that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for years offline finally are extended to the digital age.
