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Proton VPN has become the most downloaded free app in the UK, as Britons rush to bypass new age verification laws required by the Online Safety Act. Since the act came into effect, Proton reported a 1,400% surge in UK sign-ups. Currently, it is Britain’s top free app, surpassing ChatGPT according to Apple’s App Store rankings.
Based in Switzerland, Proton VPN stated that this surge has been “sustained,” contrasting with earlier short-term spikes due to similar legislation in France last month. The act aims to protect minors from accessing harmful online content but allows users to circumvent the new law by using a VPN. By masking their location, users can appear to be accessing websites outside of the UK where these laws don’t apply.
The Online Safety Act requires websites like Pornhub and Reddit to implement strict age verification measures, such as uploading official IDs or using third-party identity checks. However, Ofcom has warned against using VPNs to bypass these new rules. Katie Freeman-Tayler from Internet Matters raised concerns about the ease with which children can access these services.
“This makes it easy for them to circumvent important protections introduced under the Online Safety Act,” she told BBC News.
Proton isn’t alone in reaping benefits; six out of the top ten free apps on Apple’s UK ranking are currently VPN services, including Yoti and NordVPN. Proton stated that this large spike in sign-ups “clearly shows adults’ concerns about the impact universal age verification laws will have on their privacy.”
Proton and other tech firms previously criticized aspects of the Online Safety Act, warning it could erode user privacy by forcing companies to scan private messages or break end-to-end encryption. Political figures like Nigel Farage from Reform UK pledged to repeal these rules, calling them “authoritarian” threats to free speech.
A separate petition to overturn the act has gathered over 350,000 signatures, triggering a parliamentary review. Meanwhile, growing demand for VPNs has sparked fears of government bans but security experts believe this is unlikely due to the disruption it would cause to legitimate use.
