UK Under-16 Social Media Ban Could Put VPNs Back in the Spotlight

Three years after the UK enacted the Online Safety Act (OSA), plans for an under-16 social media ban are renewing questions about age checks, online safety and VPNs.

VPN providers told TechRadar that the Act has been only partly successful. It requires companies to detect and remove child sexual abuse material, criminalises some harms and introduces penalties for non-compliance. But the article reports that Ofcom found no significant overall change in the share of children encountering harmful content.

Providers say age checks can push young people towards smaller, less regulated sites. A Proton spokesperson said under-18s are being driven to riskier sites and apps. Privacy is another concern: a Department for Science, Innovation and Technology report found that 7% of children used VPNs to access restricted material, while privacy was the main reason children gave for using them.

Ofcom announced steps towards an under-16 social media ban last week, with age checks scheduled for early 2027. EE research cited by TechRadar suggests 42% of 11-15-year-olds will try to circumvent the ban. VPNs may not bypass account-level identity checks, but providers warn against restricting them. ExpressVPN’s Dr Peter Membrey said VPNs could work alongside legislation; Proton’s Romain Digneaux said restrictions could expose users’ data and drive them towards dangerous, often free VPNs.

The source frames a renewed debate over children’s online safety and digital privacy as a possibility, not a certainty.