Pornhub’s UK traffic plummets 77% after age check law

Pornhub, the world’s most-visited adult website, has reported a massive 77% drop in UK visitors since the implementation of rigorous age checks under the Online Safety Act (OSA).

The unprecedented decline suggests a significant shift in UK internet user behaviour, though the primary causes remain subject to debate.

The OSA now requires users accessing sexually explicit material in the UK to prove they are over 18, typically through methods such as facial identification or credit card checks.

While the law is hailed by the regulator, Ofcom, as fulfilling its purpose of stopping children from “easily stumbling across porn,” critics suggest the new rules may simply be pushing traffic elsewhere.

Pornhub’s parent company, Aylo, claims that rival adult sites ignoring the new legal requirements are seeing an exponential surge in traffic. However, data from Google confirms searches for Pornhub have been cut by nearly half.

One key factor obscuring the true change in consumption is the rise of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). Cybersecurity researchers noted that VPN app downloads in the UK spiked significantly around the time the law came into effect.

Experts suggest that users, concerned about privacy or unwilling to verify their age, are employing VPNs to mask their location, thereby accessing age-restricted content and bypassing the checks. This “reclassifies” a portion of the UK audience as non-UK traffic, according to Aras Nazarovas, an information security researcher at Cybernews.

Ofcom’s broader data shows that visits to pornography sites in the UK have fallen by almost a third overall since July. However, Aylo executive Alex Kekesi contends the OSA is largely unenforceable due to the sheer number of adult platforms and argues that age checks should instead be done at the device level for maximum effectiveness.

Despite the controversy, Ofcom maintains the law’s success, noting that the top 10 most popular sites, representing a quarter of all visits, are now compliant. The government stands by the regulator, emphasising that protecting children online remains a top priority.