UK age-verification laws: what to expect, will VPNs work to get around them?
More and more countries are passing laws to implement robust age verification checks for websites hosting adult content. The UK internet users are next in line to face changes in their watching habits due to age verification implementation. Starting July 25th, 2025, all UK porn websites have to implement age verification checks due to mandatory requirements that aim to protect children from various online harms. This act extends beyond porn sites and also includes harmful content related to promoting self-harm and cyberbullying.
As a result, a wide range of services will be affected by the act, including social media, messaging, gaming, search, advertising, and pornography platforms.
While the law certainly has a noble purpose, it requires photo ID or credit card checks to confirm your age. For this reason, the new mandatory age verification raises concerns about privacy and accessibility. As a result, many adults are left frustrated and looking for ways to navigate these restrictions. One tool people may turn to is a VPN, since it can change your virtual location and make it look for sites that you are connecting to from another country.
In this guide, I review what age verification methods users can expect to face and how using a VPN can help you access UK‐restricted adult content without immediately submitting personal documentation.
How does the age verification process work?
Age verification exists to prevent minors from watching harmful content, including pornography. Whenever a user visits a site with adult material, they’re prompted to confirm their age. There are a variety of age verification methods available, from a simple checkbox to more strict ones like uploading a government-issued ID or using third-party services to verify personal details. Access to the content is only granted when the age is verified.
While simpler verification methods like marking a checkbox are present in other countries, Ofcom (the UK’s Office of Communications) states that this method is unacceptable and must be changed to technically accurate and reliable age checks. According to the agency, self-declaration isn’t highly effective, so only more robust measures can protect minors online, including:
- Open banking authentication via bank confirmation
- Photo ID matching via official documentation
- Facial recognition-based age estimation via biometric analysis
- Mobile network operator age checks via MNO data, often linked to contractual information
- Credit card-based age validation to check if credit card holders are over 18
- Digital identity verification services via digital verification
- Email-based age estimation via third-party online services (e.g., financial institution) where that user’s provided email address has been used
Pornhub has restricted access to its website in regions that require age verification using a government ID. However, the company, as well as many other major adult content platforms, have confirmed that it will introduce enhanced age verification methods in the UK. As of now, the platform hasn’t specified which government-approved measure will be applied to identify the legal age of the visitors.
Unfortunately, along with protecting minors, these measures present some risks. The primary concern is privacy, as many users worry about exposing their personal information online, which can lead to data breaches or identity theft. Also, some security experts claim that no one can guarantee the effectiveness of these systems, as they can be bypassed with fake IDs or other methods.
Implementing age checks can also be lethal for smaller websites due to their cost and complexity. Considering the entire situation, the user can seek alternative methods to ensure their privacy and access content securely.
Can I bypass age verification with a VPN?
Since the UK government is enforcing these rules, porn websites will likely follow them. First, let me explain how the entire process works. When you connect to the internet, your device is assigned an IP address, which tells the website where you’re located. If your device appears in the UK, the website asks you to verify your age. This is where a VPN can help you get around age verification.
Using a VPN for Pornhub, you can connect to a server in a region where age verification laws don’t apply. This way, you can access adult content without verifying your age and revealing your identity. On top of that, a reliable VPN like NordVPN encrypts your traffic, so you’re completely safe from threats lurking online.
Similar laws have already been implemented in some states in the US, such as Texas, Kansas, and Florida. These states are taking action to restrict minors' access to adult content by requiring websites to ask for age verification through different methods: ID checks or third-party verification services.
Can you get fined for bypassing these requirements with a VPN? Ofcom warns service providers against hosting or permitting content that directs or encourages users to circumvent age assurance processes (that’s addressing VPNs).
However, as of July 2025, the Online Safety Act doesn’t include provisions for fining individual users who use VPNs to bypass these age verification methods. The entire weight of legal responsibility and potential penalties for failure to implement robust age gates rests with the service providers.
Bypassing age verification without a VPN
Besides using a VPN, there are a few alternative methods to bypass age verification while keeping your activity relatively private. Remember that these methods won't offer complete protection like a VPN, but they can ensure anonymity.
Use proxy
Proxies work very similarly to VPNs. They route your internet traffic through a remote server, masking your IP address and making it look like you're connecting from a different location. This lets you bypass geo-restrictions and bypass UK porn websites’ age verification. While I don't recommend using free proxy networks as they pose serious risks to your data, a private proxy offers better speed, security, and reliability.
However, you should think twice before choosing proxies over a VPN. While proxies offer decent anonymity and access, they are often more expensive than VPNs. Plus, it can't provide the same security as a VPN. So, at the end of the day, you'll pay more for fewer features.
Use Tor Browser
Another effective method for helping you watch porn without age verification is using a Tor Browser. It encrypts your internet traffic and routes it through not one but a series of randomly selected servers across the internet, helping you hide your identity.
However, the Tor Browser has one significant disadvantage – it doesn’t guarantee access to blocked content. Whether you can bypass restrictions solely depends on your exit server. If it’s located where the age verification applies, you’ll have to go through the verification process. However, you can request a new server and hope it connects you to a location where those laws don’t apply.
The current development of the law
The Online Safety Act officially became a law in October 2023. Since then, Ofcom has been working on the rules needed to implement it. The first version of the law was shared with Parliament in December 2022 before it officially took effect.
A few months later, in April, Ofcom published its final Protection of Children Codes of Practice and Guidance. On the same day, it also presented the crucial documents to the Parliament, detailing the measures services must take to protect minors. As a result, these Protection of Children Codes will come into effect on July 25th, 2025. All aspects of the Online Safety Act should be fully implemented in 2026.
Ofcom worked swiftly to roll out the Online Safety Act. At the end of 2024, it published an implementation roadmap detailing important compliance dates. In the following months, it issued guidance on Highly Effective Age Assurance (HEAA) and Children's Access Assessments and launched an enforcement program for age assurance on pornographic content. It also sent letters to hundreds of pornography providers, familiarizing them with their obligations. Some providers even have opened investigations for potential non-compliance with the age assurance requirements.
How are businesses responding to these new laws?
In response to the new Online Safety Act, many businesses express frustration regarding increasing privacy concerns. For example, Wikipedia took legal action against what it called “flawed online safety rules.” While these rules were primarily created to target websites where UK-based users may encounter harmful content, Wikipedia sees additional risks.
Due to its vague definition in terms of service, there’s a high chance Wikipedia will be classified as a significant risk website. Also, Wikipedia shares a concern over its volunteers. New regulations require the disclosure of the identity of the volunteers, which could expose them to data breaches, stalking, and lawsuits.
For similar reasons, the video-sharing platform Bitchute decided to block access for UK users altogether. In the disclaimer, it shares its opinion that Ofcom is harassing Bitchute. Therefore, the platform expresses “unwillingness to cooperate with a regime” that it views as hostile to its values and principles.
Unfortunately, many other websites have decided to block access to UK users too. For example, smaller websites don’t have the resources to ensure that their sites follow the new regulations. As a result, they decided to either shut the sites down completely or geo-block UK users.