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   Ofcom weighs "further action" on VPNs following Online Safety Act   
      
   Date:   
   Thu, 04 Dec 2025 10:57:37 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   The agency will continue to "collect information about VPN adoption in the    
   UK" to inform their decision   
      
   FULL STORY   
      
   Ofcom has announced today that it will continue to gather information about   
   VPN use in the UK to help "guide thinking and decisions about whether there    
   is a need for further action in this area."    
      
   In its first report on the state of online safety since the introduction of   
   the Online Safety Act, the agency acknowledges that there has been   
   "considerable public debate" about young people using VPNs to bypass age   
   checks.    
      
   The regulator confirmed it will expand its "evidence base" by engaging   
   directly with youth panels and surveying families on their familiarity with   
   VPNs. This data will be combined with ongoing monitoring of VPN adoption   
   trends across the UK.    
      
   Ofcom has also confirmed that its data on daily VPN use is sourced from   
   Apptopia, an app intelligence platform, after previously refusing to disclose   
   the source of its data .    
      
   In response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request filed by TechRadar,   
   Ofcom revealed it has spent close to 500,000 on internet monitoring software   
   and services since 2022.   
      
   Ofcom's information gathering continues    
      
   Alongside its technical monitoring, Ofcom has announced it is launching an   
   advisory panel with the Childrens Commissioner for England "to hear directly   
   from children" about their use and experience of the internet. This will   
   include gathering insights on their use of VPNs.    
      
   Additionally, the agency has added questions on VPNs to its C hildren and   
   Parents Media Literacy Tracker  a long-running annual survey designed to    
   track habits, literacy, and understanding of media in the UK. A report on the   
   data and analysis from this is expected in May 2026.    
      
   All of these information-gathering exercises are intended to build Ofcom's   
   "evidence base" and will inform its decision on whether further action on    
   VPNs is required and what it considers to be "proportionate."    
      
   TechRadar has reached out to Ofcom to ask whether restrictions could be    
   placed on VPNs following this process, but we are yet to hear back from the   
   agency. FOI reveals internet monitoring spending    
      
   Prior to the publication of Ofcom's report, TechRadar filed a Freedom of   
   Information (FOI) request to obtain information about how the regulator was   
   gathering data on VPN use in the UK. In response, the agency revealed it was   
   accessing data from Apptopia, SimilarWeb, and Ipsos Iris.    
      
   The request also disclosed that Ofcom had spent almost 500,000 on internet   
   monitoring software and services since 2022, figures that exclude the current   
   financial year.    
      
   We have reached out to Ofcom regarding its budget for these services in   
   2025/26 and will update this article when additional information becomes   
   available.   
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/ofcom-weighs-further-action   
   -on-vpns-following-online-safety-act   
      
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