LONDON — Virtual private network apps, which can be used to circumvent geo-specific age verification requirements, are topping Apple App Store downloads in the U.K. in the wake of new Online Safety Act rules, the BBC is reporting.
As XBIZ reported last week, July 25 marked U.K. media regulator Ofcom’s deadline for user-to-user services such as tube, cam and fan sites to implement its requisite “highly effective age assurance” measures for preventing minors in the U.K. from viewing adult content. The rules also impact mainstream platforms that host adult content, such as X and Reddit.
In April, Ofcom stated that providers of online pornography were already implementing age assurance across “thousands of sites” accessible in the U.K. in response to Ofcom’s OSA enforcement program. Pornhub is among those implementing AV measures compliant with OSA requirements.
According to a BBC report, half of the top 10 free apps in Apple’s U.K. download charts “appeared to be” for VPN services as of Monday morning.
One app maker, Proton VPN, told the BBC it saw an 1,800% spike in downloads after the new AV rules took effect.
The use of VPNs to disguise IP address and/or physical location is common, including among users seeking to bypass requirements that platforms hosting adult content check the age of users in specific territories.
France experienced a similar surge in VPN signups after Aylo, which operates Pornhub, Redtube, and YouPorn, cut off access to those sites in the country in the wake of new age verification regulations.
Spikes in VPN use also occurred in Utah, Texas and Florida when Aylo blocked access to Pornhub in those U.S. states after each passed AV legislation. As a result, some state legislators have pushed for additional rules that would require adult sites to block VPN traffic, or that would forbid covered platforms from relying solely upon the geographical registration of an IP address to determine a user’s location.