Cybersecurity Porn Hub To Block New U.K. 2 By Zak Doffman , Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Zak Doffman writes about security, surveillance and privacy. Follow Author Jan 28, 2026, 02:07am EST Jan 28, 2026, 03:35pm EST --:-- / --:-- This voice experience is generated by AI.

Key Details

This voice experience is generated by AI. All change from next week when it comes to watching porn online. getty In the latest twist in the ongoing battle between lawmakers and adult websites, Pornhub has said it’s blocking U.K. users from its sites unless they register before Feb.

The move is in response to Pornhub’s complaints about how the U.K’s Online Safety Act has been implemented. This is likely just the start of a wider campaign to change minds. As reported by Politico , a spokesperson for Pornhub parent Aylo claims the company has tried to comply with U.K. age verification regulations that took effect last summer, “but visitors — both adults and under-18s — are flocking to non-compliant sites en masse.” The company argues the regulations don’t work; they just push users to websites that are flouting the regulations.

What It Means

As such, Aylo is banning all U.K. users not already registered from the world’s most popular porn site. Aylo is pushing for device-based age verification, which almost certainly means smartphone-based software from Apple and Google. As things stand, Aylo says, "this law by its very nature is pushing both adults and children alike to the cesspools of the internet, to the most dangerous material possible.” VPN usage in the U.K.

and elsewhere surged in the wake of new porn restrictions, suggesting users were masking their locations. As BBC News reported when the new laws came into effect, “VPN apps have become the most downloaded on Apple’s App Store in the UK after sites such as PornHub, Reddit and X began requiring age verification of users.” That’s now driving calls for restrictions on VPNs. In the world of least-worst options, either smartphone-based age verification or VPN identify assurance is better than asking the porn sites themselves to register their own users. Those visiting adult websites want to put distance between themselves, the sites they visit and the content they view for understandable reasons.

The risks not doing this were slammed home by a recent Pornhub data breach, with the loss of personally identifiable information and viewing habits for registered users.