The Online Safety Act starts today, so here are the sites you now need age verification for

As of today (July 25), the UK’s Online Safety Act has come into effect, and with it, you’ll be required to undergo age verification before accessing NSFW websites.

The legislation, which is being aptly referred to as a “porn crackdown”, technically became law in 2023, but as is the case with these massive overhauls, major changes take time to implement. The likes of Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Google are all subject to the changing laws, but x-rated sites in particular will require age verification from users before accessing the content.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Online Safety Act.

Age verification will be required on these sites because of the Online Safety Act

Gone are the days when you could merely click “I am over 18” to prove your age, because sites like Pornhub will now require age verification as per the Online Safety Act.

“To continue, we are required to verify that you are 18 or older, in line with the UK Online Safety Act. To view your verification options, please visit our Age Verification Page. As part of this process, you will be asked to create a new account on Pornhub – this will automatically create a new account on AllpassTrust as well,” a message on the website now reads.

Other x-rated websites will show similar messages, though some companies, such as Bellesa, have completely pulled their content from the UK.

Well done to everyone who campaigned to ensure age verification for pornography was in the Online Safety Act!

Today it comes into force and while no doubt there will be some who get around it, it means young kids in particular won’t be stumbling on violent and harmful porn. pic.twitter.com/LGtISAmReC

— Jess Asato MP (@Jess4Lowestoft) July 25, 2025

Explaining on its website, Bellesa said: “It is unfortunately no longer possible for us to remain compliant to United Kingdom law while providing access to our content here, and have made the difficult decision to disable Bellesa.co in United Kingdom.”

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Smaller adult content sites are still available without age verification, with New Scientist reporting that such platforms are hoping to fly under the radar. Whether it actually works is yet to be seen, but adult sites are not the only ones affected by the new legislation.

Essentially, if a platform could host x-rated content, it is subject to the same laws as mainstream platforms such as Pornhub. This means X, Reddit, Bluesky, and Discord are now mapping out various age verification methods like facial age estimation, ID verification, and email address-based estimation.

Even dating apps are subject to the changes, with Grindr already implementing age verification for its users.

How does the age verification actually work?

Credit: Kelly Sikkema/Unsplash

The exact method of age verification is left in the hands of the platform itself, but in the case of Pornhub, “government-approved age assurance methods” include credit cards, email, mobile phone numbers, online banking, and facial recognition. Data is not stored for future use.

Ria Moody, a lawyer at the law firm Linklaters, told The Guardian: “Age assurance measures must be very accurate. Ofcom has said that self-declaration of age, or terms of service saying users must be over 18, are not highly effective measures and so platforms should not rely on these alone.”

Like this new online safety act in the U.K. is actually insane , you need to give Reddit a photo of your ID to access a beer related subreddit 😭 even the cider subreddit is restricted , how long before this reaches Twitter too? pic.twitter.com/ATTLv9yy0q

— Chambo (@davidc98) July 24, 2025

Though x-rated platforms seem to be using AllPassTrust, Reddit has employed Persona to verify ages. Don’t worry, though, Reddit itself does not have access to your age verification data.

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Featured image credit: Canva