Adult websites operating in the United Kingdom must implement robust age verification measures by July 2025, as mandated by new regulations announced by Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator. The move, aimed at preventing minors from accessing explicit content, comes under the controversial Online Safety Act adopted by the UK Parliament in 2023.

The updated guidelines, titled “Age Assurance and Children’s Access,” detail the requirements for online platforms hosting pornography to deploy “highly effective” age verification technologies for users accessing their services from UK-based IP addresses.

Melanie Dawes, Ofcom’s chief executive, emphasized the importance of these regulations in protecting children from exposure to harmful content.

“For too long, many online services which allow porn and other harmful material have ignored the fact that children are accessing their services,” Dawes stated. “Today, this starts to change.”

Under the new rules, platforms hosting explicit material must conduct children’s access assessments to determine whether their services are likely to be accessed by minors. Approved age verification methods include photo ID matching, credit card checks, facial age estimation, and mobile network age verification. Self-declaration of age, a common method in the past, is explicitly banned as insufficient under the guidelines.

The rules apply to all websites, including social media platforms, that host pornographic material. The regulations also require platforms that publish user-generated explicit content or content created using generative AI to introduce age checks immediately.

These measures aim to address findings from research showing that children in the UK are exposed to online pornography at an average age of 13, with some as young as nine. Approximately 14 million UK residents regularly access pornography online, according to Ofcom estimates.

“As age checks start to roll out in the coming months, adults will start to notice a difference in how they access certain online services,” Dawes added.

While some industry stakeholders have welcomed the clarity offered by the new regulations, others have expressed significant concerns. Age verification platform Yoti described the technology as “essential” for creating safe online spaces, with Julie Dawson, Yoti’s chief regulatory and policy officer, stating that it ensures “age-appropriate access for adults.”

However, Aylo, the parent company of Pornhub, criticized the measures as “ineffective, haphazard, and dangerous.”

The company pointed to its experience in Louisiana, where traffic to Pornhub dropped by 80% after similar age verification laws were implemented. Aylo warned that users often turn to “darker corners of the internet” that lack safety protocols when faced with restrictive measures.

Big Brother Watch, a privacy advocacy group, echoed concerns about the risks of age verification technologies.

“Many technological age-checking methods are ineffective and introduce additional risks, including security breaches, privacy intrusion, errors, and censorship,” said Silkie Carlo, the group’s director. “We must avoid anything like a digital ID system for the internet that would both eradicate privacy online and fail to keep children safe.”

The UK’s regulations reflect a growing trend among nations to impose stricter online safety laws. Tim Henning, executive director of the Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection (ASACP), urged platforms worldwide to comply with the UK mandate.

“Any service that allows pornography must implement ‘highly effective age assurance’ that prohibits children from accessing this material,” Henning said. “It’s good business and protects children.”

However, critics argue that these measures could lead to unintended consequences, such as pushing users to unregulated platforms or creating significant privacy risks for adults. They also caution that the financial and technical burdens of compliance could disproportionately harm smaller platforms.

Platforms have until July 2025 to comply with the regulations. Failure to implement effective age verification could result in penalties, including fines and potential service restrictions within the UK.