We’ve been discussing the online safety act in other threads, and a recent post by someone got me thinking as to what effect a VPN can have on the age restriction imposed by a mobile network provider. Our teenage son has a mobile phone that has the age restriction on and I had assumed that would be sufficient.
All new phones are sold with the restrictions active and the account holder has to ask for them to be removed. But what about a vpn?
A quick search and it seems a VPN can bypass the age restrictions of a network provider.
So it’s quite possible that with VPNs being one of the hottest news topics at the moment because of the online safety act, more kids could be learning how to access adult content than there was prior to the act.
I don’t use a VPN personally so if google has got this one wrong, I’m more than happy to stand corrected
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"Our teenage son has a mobile phone that has the age restriction on ..."
You mean that your teenage son was given a phone with the age restriction on. It's very unlikely that it's still active if he's had it for more than 5 minutes. |
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By *otMe66Man 37 weeks ago
Terra Firma |
There’s no fool proof way to stop someone getting around age restrictions other than standing over them every time they use an internet connected device. Age restriction by the mobile network provider’s filters become useless the moment a VPN is used. Filters also don't work on sites set up with soft, legitimate sounding domains with files named the same way.
The age verification via the online safety bill is also a crude method, that will hinder the less tech savvy only. |
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from a search
Your instincts are spot on. VPNs can indeed bypass many of the age restrictions imposed by mobile network providers, and the Online Safety Act has inadvertently made this loophole more visible.
How VPNs Bypass Age Restrictions
Network-level filters (like those set by mobile providers) rely on detecting and blocking traffic based on IP addresses and DNS requests.
A VPN encrypts all internet traffic and routes it through a remote server, often in another country. This hides the user's real IP address and makes it appear as though they're browsing from a different location.
As a result, the mobile provider can’t see or filter the content being accessed, effectively nullifying its age restrictions.
The Online Safety Act & VPN Surge
Since the Online Safety Act came into force on 25 July 2025, there’s been a massive spike in VPN usage across the UK:
VPN sign-ups surged by over 1,400% in the hours following the law’s enforcement.
Many platforms now require ID scans, facial recognition, or credit card checks to verify age.
Teens, being digital natives, are increasingly savvy at finding workarounds—VPNs being one of the easiest and most effective.
What This Means for Parents
Default mobile restrictions are a good start, but they’re not foolproof if a VPN is installed.
Many free VPNs are readily available on app stores, and some don’t require any technical know-how to use.
Once connected, your child could potentially access adult content, social platforms with age gates, or even bypass parental controls.
What You Can Do
Check for VPN apps on your child’s device (look for names like ProtonVPN, NordVPN, Surfshark, etc.).
Use router-level parental controls or app store restrictions to prevent VPN downloads.
Consider regular conversations about online safety—not just rules, but why they matter.
Some experts suggest combining technical safeguards with digital literacy, helping kids understand risks rather than just blocking access.
Hope this helps
Amy |
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Adult filters work by blocking access to specific sites. A VPN works by hiding which sites you are looking at. The VPN will beat the filter because the filter can’t see which sites you are going to. |
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There are worse things on the Internet than porn, which can be accessed without any age-restriction barriers.
No mechanism designed to keep porn away from kids will ever be effective, and I often think parents would be better served by becoming more tech-literate and having frequent, open and honest discussions about these things with their children.
I think the analogy is, there's a swimming pool in your back yard. Do you build a flimsy fence around it, or do you teach your kids to swim? |
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Just out of curiosity, what have people done themselves, assuming you’ve needed to. Verified their age or use a VPN?
The Mrs wasn’t sure what age verification would entail so she did a test last night. Pretty straightforward, access to the site within about 90 seconds. Mr had to use a digital ID service a couple of years ago as part of selling a property. |
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By (user no longer on site) 37 weeks ago
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"Just out of curiosity, what have people done themselves, assuming you’ve needed to. Verified their age or use a VPN?
The Mrs wasn’t sure what age verification would entail so she did a test last night. Pretty straightforward, access to the site within about 90 seconds. Mr had to use a digital ID service a couple of years ago as part of selling a property. "
I’ve been using a VPN for a long time for data security reasons and some work better than others. I’ve been using Proton and that’s very good with loads of country options and even server options within countries.
VPNs are just a bit annoying when you want to buy something online as it often automatically takes you to the website for the country your VPN is set to, so you then have to navigate through to the UK version of the site.
Also some non adult sites seem not to work at all if you are using a VPN, but not many. So you do sometimes have to switch it off or change countries. I don’t know technically why that problem happens. |
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"Also some non adult sites seem not to work at all if you are using a VPN, but not many. So you do sometimes have to switch it off or change countries. I don’t know technically why that problem happens."
There are two reasons why this might happen:
1) VPN makes it look like you're in another country. The web site in question might not accept users from that country for business reasons.
2) Some web sites want to stop people using VPNs. When you use a VPN you end up using the address of the VPN provider, and web sites can block those addresses when they learn them. |
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