The United Kingdom’s Online Safety Act took effect on 25 July, forcing websites that host pornography or other potentially harmful material to verify the age of all UK visitors. Ofcom, the communications regulator, can fine violators up to £18 million or 10 percent of their global revenue and, in severe cases, seek court orders to block non-compliant sites. Major adult-content platforms including Pornhub, YouPorn and RedTube have started asking users to upload government-issued ID, bank-card details or facial scans. Social networks such as Reddit and Bluesky are rolling out third-party verification tools, while some smaller services—among them AI-image site Civitai—have opted to shut out UK traffic altogether. Dame Melanie Dawes, Ofcom’s chief executive, said additional checks for under-13s will be required from September. Early data suggest many Britons are looking for work-arounds: Google Trends recorded a more than 700 percent surge in searches for “VPN” on Friday morning, and technology publications have published guides on using virtual private networks to bypass the new rules. Ofcom has warned platforms that promoting such circumvention would breach the act. Supporters argue the legislation brings the internet in line with real-world age restrictions on alcohol and cigarettes, but privacy advocates and some industry groups say the measures are intrusive and technically easy to evade. Tech companies face a further compliance burden as other countries consider adopting similar online-safety regimes.