UK Adult Content Traffic Falls After Identity Verifications, Yet Virtual Private Network Use Spikes, Reports Watchdog

Visitor numbers to adult content platforms in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop after the roll-out of age-checking measures earlier this year, according to the country's communications authority. At the same time, the adoption of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has risen.

Immediate Drop in User Numbers Following Rule Implementation

The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an prompt fall in visits to popular pornography sites, including the top provider in the UK. Data reveals that user traffic to this site in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.

In total, traffic to the ten top adult services in the UK have now settled at a “lower level” than prior to the end-of-July implementation date. Subsequent analysis indicates this downward trend in site visits continued past August.

Surge in VPN Usage to Evade Restrictions

Reacting to the new regulations, adoption of VPN software—which can circumvent geographic restrictions by routing internet traffic via another nation—more than doubled after 25 July.

Usage peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, rising from around 650,000 people prior to the verification were introduced. However, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has since decreased, with current figures standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of daily VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for pornography services.

Teenagers Responding to Damaging Material

In other findings, the watchdog's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing distressing content on the internet. Actions included flagging the material to the site to muting the person who posted it.

This survey was carried out before new rules came into force that require social media companies to prevent children from seeing harmful content, such as material related to suicide and pornography. The primary way young people encountered such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, suggesting that algorithms were serving inappropriate material.

Government Launch Examination of Pornography Laws

In a related development, the government stated it would review the legislation governing pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the ever-developing digital age.

“The review will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in relation to making illegal, among other things, harmful depictions of incest and any types of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” said a justice minister.

Campaigners Call For Tighter Digital Controls

Campaigners for better regulation of online pornography have called on the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring simulated familial abuse or that appears to promote abuse by using youthful performers dressed as children.

Suggested amendments to legislation aim to:

• Ban pornography where adults are impersonating children, often recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Extend the offence of creating an indecent image of a child to include material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
• Apply stricter controls on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by site algorithms.
• Introduce further restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to possess software designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
• Create a new, independent oversight agency to perform spot checks on adult platforms and act on complaints of unlawful content.

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