British Adult Content Traffic Falls After Age Checks, Yet VPN Usage Spikes, States Regulator
Traffic to adult content sites in the UK has seen a notable drop since the introduction of age-checking measures earlier this year, according to the country's communications authority. At the same time, the adoption of tools designed to circumvent these barriers has surged.
Immediate Drop in Visitor Numbers After Law Enforcement
The introduction of age verification on 25 July resulted in an immediate reduction in traffic to major online adult platforms, including the top provider in the UK. Figures indicates that visitor numbers to this site in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
Overall, traffic to the 10 most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than prior to the late July deadline. Subsequent analysis shows this downward trend in viewing continued past August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Bypass Restrictions
In response to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can get around location-based blocks by routing internet traffic through another nation—more than doubled after 25 July.
Usage reached a high at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, up from approximately 650,000 people prior to the verification were introduced. However, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has since fallen back, with current figures standing at around 900,000. It added that the volume of daily VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for adult sites.
Young People Taking Action to Harmful Material
In other findings, the watchdog's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing harmful content online. Actions ranged from flagging the content to the site to blocking the user who shared it.
This research was conducted prior to new regulations took effect that compel platforms to stop children from accessing dangerous content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way teenagers encountered such content was by scrolling through a social media timeline, indicating that algorithms were serving inappropriate material.
Government Launch Examination of Pornography Legislation
In a related development, the ministers announced it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age.
“The examination will look into the efficacy of the existing law in relation to criminalising, for example, damaging portrayals of incest and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a justice minister.
Campaigners Push For Stricter Digital Controls
Advocates for tighter regulation of online pornography have called on the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by casting young-looking performers dressed as children.
Proposed changes to legislation aim to:
- Ban pornography where adults are impersonating children, sometimes recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an adult acts the part of a child.
- Apply stricter regulation on familial abuse pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by site systems.
- Add further restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to possess tools designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
- Establish a new, independent oversight agency to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and act on reports of illegal content.
The campaigners contend that these measures would ensure the protections that have existed for decades in the physical world finally are extended to the online sphere.
