UK Adult Content Site Visits Declines After Identity Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, Reports Regulator
Traffic to adult content sites in the UK has seen a notable drop since the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, according to the nation's communications authority. At the same time, the adoption of specialist software designed to circumvent these barriers has increased.
Sharp Drop in Visitor Figures After Rule Enforcement
The introduction of age verification on 25 July led to an prompt fall in traffic to major online adult platforms, such as the top site in the UK. Figures indicates that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
In total, traffic to the 10 top adult services in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than before the late July implementation date. Later analysis suggests this downward trend in viewing persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Usage to Bypass Restrictions
In response to the new regulations, adoption of VPN software—which can circumvent geographic restrictions by masking connections through another country—surged following 25 July.
User numbers peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, rising from approximately 650,000 people prior to the verification were introduced. Subsequently, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since steadily declined, with current figures at around 900,000. It added that the level of daily VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for adult sites.
Young People Responding to Damaging Material
In other findings, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after encountering harmful content on the internet. Actions included reporting the material to the site to muting the person who shared it.
This research was carried out before new rules took effect that compel platforms to stop children from seeing harmful content, including material related to suicide and adult material. The most common way young people encountered such content was by looking through a platform timeline, indicating that recommendation systems were serving harmful material.
Ministers Announce Examination of Adult Content Laws
Separately, the government stated it would examine the criminal law relating to pornography to assess whether it is adequate in the ever-developing online world.
“The review will look into the effectiveness of the existing law in regarding making illegal, among other things, harmful depictions of familial abuse and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a government official.
Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Regulations
Advocates for better control of online pornography have urged the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages child sexual abuse by using youthful adults portraying children.
Suggested amendments to government bills aim to:
- Prohibit pornography where adults are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the crime of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an older performer plays the role of a child.
- Introduce stricter controls on familial abuse pornography, which research indicates is often promoted by platform algorithms.
- Add further restrictions on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
- Establish a new, independent oversight agency to perform spot checks on pornography sites and respond to complaints of illegal content.
The advocates contend that these steps would ensure the protections that have been enforced for decades offline finally apply to the online sphere.