UK Adult Content Site Visits Declines Following Identity Checks, But Virtual Private Network Usage Surges, States Regulator

Visitor numbers to adult content websites in the United Kingdom has fallen significantly since the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications regulator. Concurrently, the usage of tools designed to bypass these blocks has surged.

Immediate Drop in Visitor Numbers Following Rule Enforcement

The introduction of age vetting on 25 July caused an immediate reduction in traffic to popular online adult platforms, including the top provider in the UK. Data indicates that user traffic to this site in August were 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.

Overall, traffic to the 10 top pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than before the end-of-July implementation date. Later analysis shows this slump in site visits persisted beyond August.

Surge in Virtual Private Network Usage to Evade Checks

In response to the new regulations, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass geographic blocks by masking connections via another country—surged following 25 July.

User numbers reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from around 650,000 people before the verification were introduced. However, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since fallen back, with latest figures at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the level of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for adult sites.

Teenagers Responding to Damaging Online Content

In other findings, the watchdog's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing harmful content online. Actions included reporting the content to the site to muting the person who shared it.

This research was carried out before new rules took effect that require social media companies to stop children from accessing harmful content, such as material related to suicide and pornography. The primary way young people encountered such content was by looking through a social media feed, suggesting that algorithms were serving harmful material.

Ministers Announce Review of Pornography Laws

Separately, the government stated it would review the legislation governing pornography to assess whether it is effective in the ever-developing digital age.

“The examination will investigate the effectiveness of the existing law in regarding making illegal, for example, harmful depictions of incest and any types of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” stated a government official.

Campaigners Push For Tighter Digital Controls

Advocates for tighter control of adult content have called on the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring simulated familial abuse or that appears to promote child sexual abuse by casting youthful performers portraying children.

Suggested changes to government bills seek to:

• Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, often recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the offence of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
• Apply tighter regulation on familial abuse pornography, which research indicates is often promoted by platform systems.
• Add additional restrictions on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own tools designed to generate private images without permission.
• Create a new, separate regulatory body to perform spot checks on adult platforms and respond to reports of unlawful content.

The advocates contend that these steps would ensure the protections that have been enforced for years in the physical world finally are extended to the online sphere.