UK Adult Content Site Visits Falls After Identity Verifications, Yet Virtual Private Network Usage Surges, States Regulator

Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the United Kingdom has decreased markedly after the introduction of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the country's communications authority. Concurrently, the adoption of tools designed to dodge these restrictions has risen.

Sharp Drop in Visitor Numbers After Law Enforcement

The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an swift decline in visits to leading online adult platforms, such as the leading provider in the UK. Data shows that user traffic to this site in August were 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.

In total, visitor numbers to the ten most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a markedly decreased volume than prior to the end-of-July implementation date. Later data shows this slump in viewing persisted past August.

Surge in VPN Usage to Bypass Checks

Reacting to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can get around geographic blocks by routing internet traffic via another nation—more than doubled after 25 July.

Usage peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from approximately 650,000 people prior to the verification began. Subsequently, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has afterwards fallen back, with latest numbers at around 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for pornography sites.

Young People Responding to Harmful Online Content

In other findings, the regulator's report found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering harmful content online. Steps taken ranged from reporting the content to the platform to blocking the person who posted it.

This survey was carried out prior to new regulations took effect that compel platforms to prevent children from accessing harmful content, including material related to suicide and adult material. The primary way teenagers came across such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, indicating that algorithms were serving inappropriate material.

Ministers Launch Review of Adult Content Laws

Separately, the government announced it would review the legislation relating to pornography to consider whether it is adequate in the modern online world.

“The examination will look into the effectiveness of the current law in relation to criminalising, among other things, damaging depictions of incest and any types of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” said a government official.

Advocates Push For Stricter Online Regulations

Advocates for tighter control of adult content have called on the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that encourages child sexual abuse by casting young-looking performers dressed as children.

Proposed amendments to legislation seek to:

• Ban pornography where performers are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the crime of creating an indecent image of a child to cover material where an adult acts the part of a child.
• Apply tighter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by site systems.
• Add further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to possess software designed to generate 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 campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the protections that have existed for decades in the physical world finally are extended to the online sphere.