VPN downloads have soared as a nation has made a groundbreaking change in the rules around viewing X-rated content.
Apps enabling users to use a virtual private network (VPN) have become the most downloaded in the App Store in recent days in the UK.
This is due to a move to require age verification in order to access certain sites including PornHub, Reddit and X, formerly Twitter.
The new rule came into effect on Friday (July 25) and since then, users have been scrambling to find a way around it.
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One method people seem to have been trying is to download a VPN which can disguise your location online, meaning that you can use the internet as if you’re located in a different country where the rules on age verification may be different.
According to a report by the BBC, as of Monday (July 28), ‘half of the top ten free apps in Apple's app download charts in the UK appeared to be for VPN services’.
What is the age verification process for adult sites?
Certain websites that are deemed to be harmful to children will now need to verify the age of its users before allowing them access.
This includes things like requiring a copy of ID or requesting a selfie or video of their face in order to estimate their age.
However, this has led to some people voicing their concerns over risks to privacy.
Daniel Card, who is a cyber-security expert with the Chartered Institute for IT (BCS), said: “Many of these free VPNs are riddled with issues. Some act as traffic brokers for data harvesting firms, others are so poorly built they expose users to attacks.”
Katie Freeman-Tayler, from the children’s safety group Internet Matters, added: “This makes it easy for them to circumvent important protections introduced under the Online Safety Act, such as age checks designed to shield them from adult content.”
The news of the rule has had a mixed reaction on social media, with many people sharing their own thoughts on the matter.
On Reddit, one user wrote: “This act has nothing to do with protecting children, and everything to do with farming data to train AI models how to detect identification documents.”
Another said: “The government should have started their own VPN company or set out a special tax on them since they knew what the effect would be. Coulda raised a ton of cash!”
And a third person added: “So I tested this with discord age verification. You can use stock DVLA photos and bypass this. Only tested it for discord so far.”