UK Adult Content Traffic Falls After Age Checks, Yet Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, States Regulator

Access to adult content websites in the UK has decreased markedly since the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, according to the country's communications regulator. Simultaneously, the usage of tools designed to circumvent these restrictions has risen.

Sharp Fall in User Numbers Following Rule Enforcement

The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July resulted in an prompt decline in traffic to popular pornography sites, such as the top provider in the UK. Figures reveals that visitor numbers to this site in August reached 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.

Overall, traffic to the 10 top adult services in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than before the end-of-July implementation date. Later analysis suggests this slump in site visits persisted beyond August.

Surge in VPN Usage to Evade Checks

In response to the new regulations, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can circumvent geographic blocks by masking internet traffic via another country—surged following 25 July.

User numbers peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 users before the checks began. However, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has afterwards decreased, with latest figures standing at around 900,000. It added that the level of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for adult sites.

Young People Responding to Harmful Online Content

In other findings, the regulator's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering harmful content on the internet. Actions ranged from flagging the material to the site to muting the person who posted it.

This survey was carried out before new regulations came into force that require social media companies to prevent children from accessing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The primary way teenagers encountered such content was by scrolling through a platform feed, indicating that algorithms were showing inappropriate material.

Ministers Announce Examination of Adult Content Legislation

Separately, the ministers stated it would review the legislation governing pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the ever-developing digital age.

“The examination will investigate the efficacy of the existing law in regarding criminalising, among other things, harmful depictions of incest and any forms of pornography which encourage the abuse of children,” stated a justice minister.

Advocates Call For Tighter Digital Controls

Advocates for tighter control of online pornography have called on the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by casting young-looking adults dressed as children.

Proposed changes to government bills aim to:

• Ban pornography where adults are impersonating children, often recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
• Extend the offence of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an older performer plays the role of a child.
• Apply stricter controls on incest-themed pornography, which research suggests is often promoted by platform algorithms.
• Introduce additional restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to possess tools designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
• Establish a new, separate oversight agency to perform spot checks on pornography sites and respond to complaints of unlawful content.

The advocates contend that these steps would ensure the protections that have existed for decades offline finally are extended to the online sphere.