British Adult Content Traffic Falls After Age Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Usage Surges, States Regulator

Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the UK has seen a notable drop since the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the country's communications authority. Concurrently, the adoption of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has surged.

Sharp Fall in Visitor Numbers Following Law Enforcement

The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an prompt reduction in visits to leading online adult platforms, such as the top site in the UK. Figures reveals that visitor numbers to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.

Overall, visitor numbers to the ten top pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a “lower level” than before the late July implementation date. Later analysis indicates this slump in viewing persisted beyond August.

Surge in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Checks

Reacting to the new regulations, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass geographic restrictions by masking connections through another nation—increased dramatically after 25 July.

User numbers peaked at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 users prior to the verification were introduced. Subsequently, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has afterwards steadily declined, with current figures at around 900,000. It clarified that the level of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for adult sites.

Teenagers Taking Action to Harmful Material

Elsewhere, the regulator's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering distressing content online. Steps taken ranged from reporting the material to the site to muting the user who posted it.

This survey was conducted prior to new rules came into force that require platforms to stop children from accessing harmful content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The most common way young people came across such content was by looking through a platform feed, indicating that recommendation systems were serving inappropriate material.

Ministers Launch Review of Pornography Legislation

In a related development, the ministers stated it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern online world.

“The examination will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in relation to making illegal, for example, harmful depictions of familial abuse and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a government official.

Advocates Push For Stricter Digital Regulations

Campaigners for better control of adult content have called on the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by using youthful performers dressed as children.

Proposed amendments to government bills aim to:

• Prohibit pornography where adults are impersonating children, often filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Extend the offence of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an adult acts the part of a child.
• Introduce tighter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by platform systems.
• Introduce further restrictions on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
• Create a new, separate regulatory body to conduct spot checks on adult platforms and respond to reports of unlawful content.

The advocates argue that these steps would ensure the protections that have been enforced for decades in the physical world finally apply to the digital age.