British Adult Content Site Visits Declines After Identity Checks, Yet VPN Use Surges, States Regulator

Visitor numbers to adult content sites in the United Kingdom has decreased markedly after the roll-out of age-checking measures this summer, as reported by the country's communications regulator. Concurrently, the usage of tools designed to dodge these restrictions has surged.

Immediate Drop in User Figures Following Rule Implementation

The introduction of age vetting on 25 July caused an prompt decline in traffic to popular online adult platforms, such as the most visited provider in the UK. Figures reveals that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.

In total, traffic to the ten most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than before the end-of-July implementation date. Later data shows this downward trend in site visits continued beyond August.

Surge in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Bypass Restrictions

In response to the new regulations, adoption of VPN software—which can get around location-based restrictions by routing internet traffic through another country—surged after 25 July.

Usage peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from approximately 650,000 people prior to the checks began. However, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has since steadily declined, with latest numbers at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites.

Young People Responding to Harmful Online Content

Elsewhere, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing damaging content online. Steps taken ranged from flagging the material to the platform to blocking the user who shared it.

This research was conducted prior to new rules came into force that compel social media companies to stop children from seeing dangerous content, such as material related to self-harm and adult material. The primary way young people came across such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, suggesting that algorithms were showing harmful material.

Ministers Announce Review of Adult Content Legislation

In a related development, the government stated it would examine the legislation governing pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern online world.

“The examination will investigate the efficacy of the existing law in relation to criminalising, for example, damaging depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which encourage child sexual abuse,” said a justice minister.

Advocates Push For Stricter Online Regulations

Advocates for tighter regulation of online pornography have urged the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that encourages abuse by using youthful adults portraying children.

Suggested amendments to government bills seek to:

• Prohibit pornography where adults are mimicking children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the offence of creating an indecent image of a child to cover material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
• Introduce stricter controls on familial abuse pornography, which research suggests is heavily recommended by platform algorithms.
• Introduce additional controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to generate private images without permission.
• Establish a new, independent regulatory body to conduct inspections on adult platforms and respond to reports of unlawful content.

The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have existed for decades in the physical world finally are extended to the digital age.