UK Pornography Site Visits Falls Following Identity Verifications, Yet Virtual Private Network Usage Surges, Reports Watchdog

Visitor numbers to pornography websites in the UK has seen a notable drop after the enforcement of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications regulator. Simultaneously, the usage of specialist software designed to bypass these barriers has risen.

Sharp Fall in Visitor Figures Following Rule Enforcement

The introduction of age verification on 25 July led to an prompt fall in visits to popular pornography sites, including the most visited site in the UK. Data indicates that visitor numbers to this site in August reached 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.

Overall, traffic to the 10 top adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a significantly reduced level than prior to the end-of-July implementation date. Subsequent data suggests this decline in site visits continued beyond August.

Surge in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Restrictions

Reacting to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can get around location-based restrictions by routing internet traffic through another country—increased dramatically following 25 July.

User numbers peaked at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from around 650,000 users prior to the checks began. Subsequently, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since steadily declined, with current numbers at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of regular VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for adult services.

Young People Taking Action to Harmful Online Content

Elsewhere, the regulator's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing distressing content online. Steps taken included reporting the content to the platform to muting the person who shared it.

This survey was carried out before new regulations took effect that compel platforms to stop children from accessing harmful content, including material related to self-harm and adult material. The most common way young people came across such content was by scrolling through a platform timeline, suggesting that algorithms were showing harmful material.

Government Launch Review of Pornography Legislation

Separately, the government stated it would review the criminal law governing pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the ever-developing digital age.

“The examination will look into the efficacy of the current law in relation to making illegal, for example, damaging depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” said a justice minister.

Advocates Call For Tighter Digital Regulations

Campaigners for better control of online pornography have called on the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by using young-looking adults dressed as children.

Proposed changes to government bills aim to:

• Prohibit pornography where performers are mimicking children, sometimes recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Extend the crime of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an adult plays the role of a child.
• Apply stricter controls on incest-themed pornography, which research suggests is heavily recommended by site algorithms.
• Introduce additional controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to possess software designed to create non-consensual nude images.
• Create a new, independent oversight agency to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and respond to complaints of illegal content.

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