Source: Ofcom published on this website Friday 27 June 2025 by Jill Powell
Children in the UK will gain increased protection from online pornography next month, Ofcom has announced, as major providers agree to bring in robust methods to check users’ age for the first time.
By 25 July, all sites and apps that allow pornography – whether they are dedicated adult sites or social media, search or gaming services – must use highly effective age checks to ensure children are not normally able to encounter it. Online firms who publish their own pornography are already required to protect children from it, and thousands of sites have already introduced robust age checks in response.
Major porn providers operating in the UK have confirmed to Ofcom that they will introduce effective checks by next month’s deadline in order to comply with the new rule.
Monitoring compliance with these new duties is a priority for Ofcom. If any company fails to comply with its new duties, Ofcom can impose fines and – in very serious cases – apply for a court order to prevent the site or app from being available in the UK. As part of our work enforcing the Online Safety Act, we have already launched investigations into four porn providers and won’t hesitate to take further action from July.
A news release is available with more information and new research from Ofcom on the extent to which children are accessing porn online will be published shortly.