From February 2, Pornhub will block UK access for new users due to strict age verification laws under the Online Safety Act (OSA). Only existing account holders can view content, as Aylo, Pornhub's parent company, claims the legislation forces users to riskier sites.

Aylo reported a 77% traffic drop after the law change, criticizing the OSA for missing its protective goal. Despite this, Ofcom asserts the measures successfully shield minors. "Porn services must implement age checks or block UK access," stated an Ofcom spokesperson.

Alex Kekesi of Aylo called the decision difficult, highlighting persistent access to thousands of unregulated sites. While the OSA pushed for compliance, Kekesi argues VPNs allow both adults and children to bypass restrictions, undermining law effectiveness.

Solomon Friedman from Ethical Capital Partners blames the legislation over its enforcement, pointing out regulatory limitations. Emma Drake from Bird and Bird notes that while the determined seek alternatives, many minors are deterred by barriers.

Calls for device-level controls by giants like Apple and Microsoft are increasing. Cybersecurity expert Chelsea Jarvie advocates for layered protection, emphasizing no single measure suffices. Ofcom, however, continues to enforce the current rules.

As VPN downloads surged post-verification requirements, efforts in the House of Lords target restricting VPN access for children, underscoring the complexity of safeguarding online environments.

Friedman underlines the need for better legislative frameworks, highlighting that current policies cannot fully succeed in preventing underage access. Meanwhile, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology emphasizes the importance of robust age assurance in keeping adult content accessible while protecting minors.

Emma Drake suggests device-level barriers offer potential for future regulation, provided privacy concerns are addressed. Meanwhile, Ofcom encourages tech industry innovation to tackle age verification challenges effectively.

Debate continues on balancing access with safety, as stakeholders seek improved strategies to curb underage exposure without driving users to darker internet corners.

Key Takeaways

• Pornhub restricts UK access due to age verification laws.

• Critics claim regulations drive users to unregulated sites.

• Device-level controls and VPN issues remain central to the debate.

  

Adapted by ASEAN Now from Source 2026-01-27

 

 

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I wonder how long before Labour block all adult content then all forms of social media.

They're already going after X due to bikini pics.

Their BBC shall be the only source of truth. They could rename it the ministry of truth.

My sympathies to our British friends!

The inevitable conclusion of the Great British Porn Panic.

After years of tutting at continental licentiousness, your legislators have now officiously unplugged your internet’s whoopee cushion.

So, where does that leave the stoic, rain-coated Briton in search of a harmless… chuckle?

I suspect you will be right where you’ve always been: parked in front of your telly, with a cuppa and a biscuit, watching Benny Hill reruns.

Think about it. It’s the perfect, OFCOM-compliant solution. Why bother with risky age-verification portals when you can have thrilling chase scenes (to the tune of 'Yakety Sax') with barely-concealed innuendo, and aesthetic nudity (usually involving a strategically placed hat or a conveniently passing police officer).

Most importantly, a complete absence of any requirement to prove you’re over 18, just a vague sense that you probably remember the 1970s.

Your government, in its quest to shield the nation’s eyes, has mandated a cultural reset.

You’re not really being driven to “darker corners of the web”, you’re being taken back in time to Thames Television, circa 1982 and those risqué holiday postcards.

Still, there's always VPN!

Thank the gods! British children will finally not be forced to watch porn! /s

(They'll have to try it in person. Expect rapes and assaults to skyrocket.)

Maybe this will reincarnate the satellite TV channels

Filmnet

Red Hot Dutch

Sexview

ErosTv

Erotica

SCT

Hustler Tv and the others that I have forgotten the names of.

I remember that a French national TV station (maybe TF1 ?)

used to show one hardcore porn movie once a month in the clear.

Many of the the other European countries cable/sat payTV channels showed porn regularly.

Tv1000 normally broadcast from the docklands in UK but had to switch satellite uplinks

before showing the late night 'good stuff' quite a few times the changeover failed leaving the viewers very frustrated !!!

In the clip below you can see the encrypted D2mac signal drop out then resync before

Ylva the porn presenter can start her intro then show the film.

I commend the UK for taking decisive action to safeguard the welfare of children. This commitment is essential in ensuring a brighter and safer future for the youngest members of our society.

31 minutes ago, nick supreme said:

ensuring a brighter and safer future for the youngest members of our society.

That is parents responsibility not the nanny state governments.

In any case this is not about 'protecting' children it is about bringing in digital ID for everyone

a control and surveillance state with no escape the digital panopticon.

Thats what VPNs are for.

4 minutes ago, Yagoda said:

Thats what VPNs are for.

You stated I am banned from a country, tell me which country, please, before you go back to watching porn....😒......?

9 minutes ago, transam said:

You stated I am banned from a country, tell me which country, please, before you go back to watching porn....😒......?

Yinnland ?

44 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

Yinnland ?

Was it you that fed Yagoda the lie, though I wouldn't be surprised...🤥

Who cares?

Weeeell, a lot of UK lads will have their sight saved..................🥺..........🤣

4 hours ago, nick supreme said:

I commend the UK for taking decisive action to safeguard the welfare of children. This commitment is essential in ensuring a brighter and safer future for the youngest members of our society.

Spoken like a true fascist.

2 hours ago, transam said:

Weeeell, a lot of UK lads will have their sight saved..................🥺..........🤣

Yeah these freedom clampdowns are all for the greater good, right comrade?

8 hours ago, transam said:

Weeeell, a lot of UK lads will have their sight saved..................🥺..........🤣

Nothing worse than someone who grew up in the 70s driving v8's turning into a boomer Lib and denying the next gen the freedom and liberty they enjoyed.

17 year old trans would think you’ve a <deleted>.

9 hours ago, JonnyF said:

Nothing worse than someone who grew up in the 70s driving v8's turning into a boomer Lib and denying the next gen the freedom and liberty they enjoyed.

17 year old trans would think you’ve a <deleted>.

Don't take my post too seriously, eh.........😂

Free proton VPN only allows around 4 GB of DL's a day.

Just enough to satisfy a fairly normal person. 😉

One kid downloads it and distributes it to 25 others in their class.They won't be porn starved.

Yeah, but does pornhub have the Melania flic?

Utterly pathetic. Makes Brits sound like a load of prudes. When I was a kid in school in the UK in the 1940s and 1950s hardcore porn was circulated in the form of postcard sized pictures. Kids will always find a way to access such material.

I understand why parents might want to stop their Children^™️ watching porn. Their are numerous ways to block child access on phones and computers.

But since when has it been the right of government to intrude into a family?

Parents need to be made aware it is their job to teach their children right from wrong.

20 minutes ago, Purdey said:

I understand why parents might want to stop their Children^™️ watching porn. Their are numerous ways to block child access on phones and computers.

But since when has it been the right of government to intrude into a family?

Parents need to be made aware it is their job to teach their children right from wrong.

Communists/socialists want the role of parenting (like everything else) to be handled by the state.

Starmer wants to block Steam games as well. No pc gaming for Brit kids!

considering that the age of consent is 16 and the age for viewing adult material is 18 , there is something not quite right about these laws. How on earth are 16 year olds supposed to know what to do when it comes down to it ?

There will no doubt be an intensive sex education programme in the pipeline, emphasising all the current fashionable departures from traditional hetro' sexual- relations in the interests of diversity more future voters for Starmer

Pornhub is mostly AI generated rubbish these days anyway. Much better sites available with real women. So I'm told... 👀

Has the UK always been a nanny state, and is this what people really want?

On 1/28/2026 at 8:06 AM, Jim Waldron said:

I suspect you will be right where you’ve always been: parked in front of your telly, with a cuppa and a biscuit, watching Benny Hill reruns.

No self respecting Brit would bother waiting until late evening for Benny Hill when there was Baywatch in the early evening

To be honest, for me , it was the over availability of free porn that came with the advent of the internet, that pretty much ended any interest I had in porn .

Is that because I got bored with it ? No not at all, its because it sent me blind 😁

A post with misquoted content has been removed.