UK Pornography Site Visits Declines Following Identity Checks, But VPN Use Surges, Reports Regulator

Access to adult content sites in the UK has seen a notable drop since the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, according to the country's communications regulator. Simultaneously, the usage of tools designed to bypass these restrictions has increased.

Immediate Fall in User Numbers Following Law Enforcement

The introduction of age verification on 25 July resulted in an prompt reduction in traffic to leading pornography sites, including the most visited site in the UK. Figures shows that user traffic to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.

In total, visitor numbers to the ten most-visited adult services in the UK have now settled at a markedly decreased volume than before the late July implementation date. Later data indicates this decline in site visits continued past August.

Surge in VPN Usage to Evade Restrictions

Reacting to the new rules, use of VPN software—which can bypass location-based blocks by routing internet traffic via another country—increased dramatically after 25 July.

User numbers peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 people before the checks began. However, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has since fallen back, with current figures standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites.

Teenagers Taking Action to Harmful Material

In other findings, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing harmful content online. Steps taken included reporting the content to the site to blocking the person who shared it.

This survey was conducted prior to new rules came into force that require social media companies to prevent children from seeing dangerous content, including material related to self-harm and adult material. The primary way young people came across such content was by looking through a social media timeline, indicating that algorithms were serving inappropriate material.

Government Launch Examination of Pornography Laws

Separately, the ministers stated it would examine the legislation relating to pornography to assess whether it is adequate in the ever-developing online world.

“The review will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in relation to criminalising, among other things, harmful portrayals of incest and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official.

Advocates Call For Stricter Online Regulations

Campaigners for better control of online pornography have urged the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages abuse by using youthful performers dressed as children.

Suggested changes to legislation seek to:

• Ban pornography where adults are mimicking children, sometimes recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the crime of making an indecent image of a child to cover material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
• Apply tighter regulation on familial abuse pornography, which research indicates is often promoted by site systems.
• Introduce additional restrictions on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to possess software designed to create non-consensual nude images.
• Establish a new, separate regulatory body to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and respond to complaints of illegal content.

The campaigners contend that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have existed for years offline finally apply to the online sphere.