UK Age Check Law: Impact on Websites

Online Safety Act Impacts UK Web Traffic

The United Kingdom has begun implementing the age-verification requirements outlined in the Online Safety Act, and initial reports from The Washington Post indicate a notable shift in online traffic patterns.

New Age-Check Regulations

Current legislation in the U.K. mandates that websites featuring pornography employ age-verification methods. These methods include technologies like facial scanning and the submission of official identification, such as driver’s licenses.

Furthermore, the regulations necessitate that online platforms actively safeguard children from accessing adult content. Consequently, platforms like Bluesky and Reddit have initiated age-verification procedures for a portion of their user base.

Traffic Shifts Observed

An analysis conducted by The Washington Post, examining the top 90 pornography websites based on U.K. visitor data from Similarweb, revealed interesting trends.

Fourteen sites were identified as not currently implementing any age-verification measures. These 14 sites have all witnessed a substantial surge in traffic, with one experiencing a doubling of visitors compared to the previous year.

Compliance and Circumvention

Many websites have outwardly demonstrated compliance with the new law, but simultaneously voiced criticism. Some have linked to petitions advocating for the Act’s repeal.

Notably, certain sites even provided users with guidance on how to bypass the age-verification systems.

Unintended Consequences

John Scott-Railton, a researcher from the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab, described the situation as “a textbook illustration of the law of unintended consequences” in an interview with The Post.

He further explained that the legislation appears to be “suppressing traffic to compliant platforms while driving users to sites without age verification.”