The Labour Party government is exploring new rules to restrict VPN usage as part of broader measures to protect children online. Children's minister Josh MacAlister told the BBC that age-gating VPN use is being considered, which would be "really welcome" to curb usage for under-16s. This is part of sweeping changes that include a potential social media ban.
Who Could Be Affected
If restrictions come into effect this year, children born between 2010 and 2026 would be impacted. The government has not yet confirmed any VPN restrictions, but Liz Kendall, former Department for Work and Pensions boss, stated that an update and announcement will be made in July.
Age Assurance Challenges
The government plans to use "highly effective age assurance"—tougher checks to accurately identify or estimate a person's age—to enforce the ban. However, Ofcom notes that while technically feasible, applying age assurance at 16 presents challenges. For instance, credit card or email address checks work at 18 but not at 16.
Ms Kendall said: "We will come back to VPNs in July; I have commissioned further research about their usage. There are really important issues to balance here. Many people want to use VPNs for privacy—that is important—but we know that some children use them to get around restrictions. I will come back to that in July in our response to the consultation."
Loophole Concerns
Last year, the government was advised to stop children using VPNs to bypass age checks on porn sites. The children's commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza, told BBC Newsnight it was "absolutely a loophole that needs closing" and called for age verification on VPNs. She wants ministers to explore requiring VPNs "to implement highly effective age assurances to stop underage users from accessing pornography."
Kerry Smith, CEO of the Internet Watch Foundation, said "children's exposure to extreme or violent sexual imagery can normalise harmful sexual behaviours, and is increasingly linked to sexual violence against girls and women." She added: "It is clear this is something we all need to be taking seriously, and the safeguards adult sites have put in place to make sure children can't access sexual content must be robust and meaningful."
