Nov 11, 2025

Hundreds of millions of smartphone users are now subject to porn bans and restrictions, as legislators in the U.S. and Europe either block adult websites completely or mandate identity and age verification checks on users accessing content. This plays into a fundamental misunderstanding of the way the global internet works. It has drastic, long-term implications for the freedom of millions. And there are short-term threats as well, which is why Google has issued a new warning as millions of users install VPNs to hide their locations and bypass the restrictions. “Threat actors distribute malicious applications disguised as legitimate VPN services,” Google tells smartphone users, "and many of these impersonate trusted enterprise and consumer VPN brands or use social engineering lures." Just as with all the other VPN warnings now doing the rounds, Google's has been triggered by porn bans that have seen installs of VPN apps skyrocket by thousands of percentage points in a very short period of time. An entirely new user base has to be educated on the risks in using bad VPNs quickly, before the damage is done. Now those same users also face the threat of restrictions on VPNs. Multiple U.S. states have enacted porn bans of various flavors, but it is the U.K. that could be the trigger point for a more fundamental change to internet freedoms. The country mandates age verification checks on porn sites, which has reportedly decimated porn use That's misleading. Porn usage has not drastically reduced. Users are simply masking their locations to bypass the ban. And now the country could tread new ground to stop that from working, echoing its fight with Apple over cloud encryption. What has happened — just as in the U.S. — is that VPN usage has surged . Porn users now pretend to be someplace else, accessing Pornhub and other sites via servers in countries with no restrictions. Proton VPN said that “just a few minutes after the Online Safety Act went into effect," its VPN signups originating in the U.K. “surged by more than 1,400%. Unlike previous surges, this one is sustained.” Meanwhile, “NordVPN noted a 1,000% rise in U.K. subscriptions” almost as quickly. In total, there were “10.7 million VPN downloads in the first half of 2025,” says Tech Radar , with the U.K. “one of the world's fastest-growing VPN markets,” ranking “eighth worldwide.” Just as with money laundering and online gambling, legislators are discovering that local laws mean nothing in isolation where the internet is concerned. This surge plays into Google's warning. Per Telecoms Tech News , “the controversial Online Safety Act is pushing many users, including minors, towards risky free VPN services to protect their privacy.” But alarmingly, “in seeking to protect their data, many are unwittingly exposing their data to servers in China and Russia.” Comparitech found six analyzed (VPNs) “were communicating with Chinese domains,” while “even more troubling, eight Android VPNs “were found to be in contact with Russian IP addresses linked to major tech firms like Yandex and Mail.ru.” “In an effort to escape the perceived surveillance and censorship of the Online Safety Act,” Telecoms Tech News says, “users are funnelling their entire internet activity through services that could be sharing their data with entities in China and Russia. The very tool used to achieve privacy becomes a potential instrument of foreign state surveillance, nullifying any intended benefit.” Now the U.K. is teasing the idea of VPN restrictions . Just as its iCloud encryption ban has restricted its Apple users in a way even China has not, so the country is so focused on controlling the internet that it may do the same with VPNs. “The U.K.'s communications regulator, Ofcom, has told TechRadar that it's using an unnamed third-party tool to monitor VPN use in the U.K. The agency responsible for implementing the Online Safety Act refused to name the platform. However, it seems to have artificial intelligence capabilities and – despite assurances that personal information isn't being accessed – privacy concerns remain.” The U.K. government says it has “made it clear that nothing is off the table when it comes to keeping children safe, and we will continue to monitor and assess the effectiveness of the Online Safety Act in robustly protecting children online.” Those measures still “on the table” almost certainly include age verification for VPNs themselves, and prohibiting their use by minors. Whilst unprecedented, that would clearly be preferable to any form of blanket ban on VPNs for all users. A survey in August found “the majority of British adults believe the use of virtual private networks (VPNs) should be banned for minors as users flock to the service to avoid age restrictions put in place following the Online Safety Act.” The YouGov poll reported that “55% of UK adults were in favour of banning VPNs for under-18s, with concern that legislative efforts to prevent children from accessing harmful digital content are being undermined by the technology.” And the U.K. is not alone in exploring VPN restrictions. Some U.S. legislators want to do the same . It's likely Wisconsin will be the first to test the art of the possible. Its proposed legislation to stop adult websites “knowingly and intentionally publishing or distributing material harmful to minors on the internet,” is designed “to prevent anyone from accessing their content when connected to a VPN,” per TechRadar Similar proposals in Michigan have been been criticized by Proton (which supplies its own VPN) for “sending the wrong message around what the U.S. approach should be for internet security and censorship.” These are all dominoes, and it will take just one to fall before other states follow suit, just as with the porn blocks themselves. “To protect their data and digital privacy, people are increasingly turning to VPNs. Unsurprisingly, though, lawmakers in Wisconsin aren't pleased about it,” TechRadar says , “and have drafted a bill (called Wisconsin AB 105/SB 130) that could make it illegal to use a VPN to access adult content.” VPNs are lifelines for internet users behind iron and bamboo curtains around the world, providing access to social media, news sites and messaging. For the west to consider restrictions is dangerous. To do so in the interest of child safety is disingenuous. Truly bad actors simply use something else. It's normal users that pay the price. There is also the technical challenge of locally blocking VPNs. It would require significant changes in how the internet is provided and monitored and the freedom to install apps on devices. State-by-state restrictions on app availability would be a new direction of travel that would trigger a major outcry from privacy advocates. And the same is true when it comes to cyber safety. Hundreds of millions of users are now downloading and installing VPNs, secure tunnels that route all internet traffic to and from a device via third-party servers. VPNs are powerful tools. And from the wrong developers they're dangerous tools. A bad VPN is much worse than no VPN. A VPN ban would just make this worse. Google's warning to only use verified apps from official sources would be impossible. Users would turn to illicit downloads without any of those critical security checks in place. It would be a hackers' paradise. Google says “once installed, these applications serve as a vehicle to deliver dangerous malware payloads including info-stealers, remote access trojans and banking trojans that exfiltrate sensitive data such as browsing history, private messages, financial credentials and cryptocurrency wallet information.” In a report released last month, Zimperium warns that “while headlines have often highlighted the risks of VPNs linked to high-risk jurisdictions, a broad-scale security and privacy analysis by Zimperium zLabs of 800 free VPN apps for both Android and iOS reveals the threat is far more widespread. Our research found that a significant number of these applications exhibit dangerous behaviors." Google's advice to install VPNs only from official stores is key. But I'd go further. Free VPNs are best avoided. Chinese VPNs must be avoided. Google and Apple have been criticized for allowing unsafe VPNs onto their app stores. Use your own judgment and select a reputable VPN from a well-known western brand. And be prepared to pay for it. “Determining a VPN's true operational base is notoriously difficult,” Telecoms Tech News says. “Many providers use a complex web of shell companies in privacy-friendly nations to mask that their infrastructure and staff may reside elsewhere. This corporate obfuscation makes it nearly impossible for the average user to know who is handling their sensitive data.” That means, hard as it might be, “before installing a VPN, especially a free one, users should attempt to investigate its origins.” Meanwhile, keep an eye on the news. A clampdown on VPN usage really could be on its way. And just as with the threat to end-to-end encryption it's an alarming new direction for internet freedoms. Legislators need to stop and think.