British Pornography Traffic Declines Following Identity Checks, But Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, States Watchdog
Visitor numbers to pornography sites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop after the enforcement of age-checking measures earlier this year, according to the nation's communications authority. Concurrently, the adoption of specialist software designed to bypass these restrictions has risen.
Sharp Drop in User Figures After Rule Implementation
The enforcement of age verification on 25 July resulted in an swift reduction in traffic to major pornography sites, including the most visited site in the UK. Data shows that user traffic to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.
Overall, visitor numbers to the ten most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than prior to the late July deadline. Subsequent data shows this slump in viewing persisted beyond August.
Surge in Virtual Private Network Usage to Bypass Checks
In response to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass location-based restrictions by routing connections through another nation—surged after 25 July.
User numbers peaked at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 users prior to the checks began. However, the regulator stated that VPN usage has since fallen back, with latest numbers standing at around 900,000. It clarified that the level of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for adult services.
Young People Taking Action to Harmful Material
Elsewhere, the regulator's report found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing damaging content online. Steps taken ranged from reporting the content to the site to blocking the user who shared it.
This research was conducted before new regulations took effect that compel social media companies to stop children from accessing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The primary way young people came across such content was by looking through a social media timeline, suggesting that recommendation systems were showing harmful material.
Government Announce Review of Pornography Legislation
In a related development, the government announced it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to consider whether it is effective in the ever-developing online world.
“The review will look into the efficacy of the existing law in regarding making illegal, for example, harmful portrayals of familial abuse and any types of pornography which encourage child sexual abuse,” stated a government official.
Advocates Call For Tighter Online Controls
Advocates for better control of online pornography have urged the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that encourages child sexual abuse by using young-looking performers portraying children.
Suggested changes to government bills seek to:
- Ban pornography where adults are impersonating children, often recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the offence of making an indecent image of a child to cover material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
- Apply tighter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by site systems.
- Introduce additional controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to own software designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
- Create a new, independent oversight agency to perform inspections on pornography sites and act on complaints of unlawful content.
The advocates contend that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have existed for decades in the physical world finally are extended to the online sphere.
