UK Adult Content Traffic Declines After Identity Checks, Yet VPN Use Spikes, States Watchdog
Traffic to adult content sites in the United Kingdom has fallen significantly after the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the country's communications watchdog. Concurrently, the adoption of specialist software designed to bypass these barriers has increased.
Sharp Drop in Visitor Figures Following Law Implementation
The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July led to an immediate fall in traffic to leading pornography sites, including the most visited provider in the UK. Figures indicates that user traffic to this platform in August were 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
Overall, traffic to the ten most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than prior to the end-of-July deadline. Subsequent analysis suggests this downward trend in viewing persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Usage to Bypass Checks
Reacting to the new regulations, adoption of VPN software—which can get around geographic blocks by routing internet traffic through another nation—increased dramatically following 25 July.
User numbers reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 users before the verification began. However, the regulator noted that VPN usage has afterwards fallen back, with latest numbers at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of daily VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites.
Young People Taking Action to Harmful Online Content
In other findings, the regulator's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after encountering distressing content on the internet. Actions included flagging the material to the platform to muting the person who posted it.
This survey was conducted prior to new rules came into force that require platforms to prevent children from accessing dangerous content, including material related to self-harm and pornography. The most common way teenagers came across such content was by scrolling through a platform timeline, suggesting that algorithms were serving inappropriate material.
Ministers Announce Review of Pornography Laws
Separately, the government announced it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age.
“The review will look into the efficacy of the current law in regarding criminalising, for example, damaging depictions of incest and any forms of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” stated a government official.
Advocates Call For Tighter Digital Controls
Advocates for better control 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 young-looking adults portraying children.
Proposed changes to government bills seek to:
- Prohibit pornography where performers are mimicking children, sometimes recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an adult acts the part of a child.
- Apply stricter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is often promoted by site algorithms.
- Add further controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an offence to possess software designed to create non-consensual nude images.
- Create a new, independent oversight agency to perform inspections on adult platforms and respond to reports of illegal content.
The advocates argue that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for years in the physical world finally apply to the digital age.
