British Pornography Site Visits Declines Following Identity Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, Reports Regulator

Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the UK has seen a notable drop after the introduction of age-checking measures earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications authority. At the same time, the adoption of tools designed to bypass these restrictions has increased.

Sharp Drop in User Figures Following Law Implementation

The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July resulted in an prompt fall in traffic to leading pornography sites, including the most visited provider in the UK. Figures reveals that user traffic to this site in August reached 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.

Overall, visitor numbers to the 10 top adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than before the end-of-July implementation date. Subsequent data indicates this decline in site visits persisted beyond August.

Sharp Increase in VPN Adoption to Evade Restrictions

Reacting to the new regulations, adoption of VPN software—which can get around geographic restrictions by masking connections via another country—increased dramatically after 25 July.

Usage peaked at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 users before the checks began. Subsequently, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has since decreased, with latest figures standing at approximately 900,000. It added that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for adult sites.

Teenagers Taking Action to Harmful Online Content

Elsewhere, the regulator's report revealed that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing harmful content online. Steps taken ranged from reporting the material to the platform to blocking the user who posted it.

This survey was carried out before new rules came into force that require platforms to stop children from accessing dangerous content, including material related to suicide and adult material. The most common way young people encountered such content was by scrolling through a social media timeline, suggesting that algorithms were serving inappropriate material.

Ministers Announce Examination of Adult Content Legislation

Separately, the ministers stated it would examine the legislation governing pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the ever-developing online world.

“The examination will look into the efficacy of the current law in regarding making illegal, among other things, harmful depictions of incest and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a justice minister.

Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Regulations

Campaigners for tighter regulation of online pornography have urged the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages abuse by casting young-looking performers portraying children.

Suggested changes to legislation seek to:

• Prohibit pornography where performers are mimicking children, sometimes recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the offence of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an adult acts the part of a child.
• Apply stricter controls on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by site systems.
• Add additional controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an offence to own tools designed to generate private images without permission.
• Establish a new, separate oversight agency to perform spot checks on adult platforms and respond to complaints of unlawful content.

The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the protections that have been enforced for years offline finally apply to the online sphere.