Kids As Young As 6 Have Been Accidentally Coming Across Porn Online

Children as young as six have come across pornography online, according to new research from the Children’s Commissioner.More children report seeing pornography online than two years ago, a poll conducted in May 2025 found, with more than a quarter of children reporting seeing porn by the time they turn 11.It comes after an Ofcom survey in July found almost one in 10 (8% of) UK kids aged eight to 14 years old had visited an online porn site (or app) over a month-long period. The most likely viewers were boys aged 13 to 14 years old – with two out of 10 visiting adult sites.As of 25 July, Ofcom has been cracking down on porn sites not enforcing age checks among users, with sites facing large fines or being blocked in the UK if they fail to do so.However some critics are concerned these checks could lead to kids seeking out porn elsewhere – “on smaller, more fringe websites that are not subject to the same internal safeguards as the porn giants” – which could potentially land themselves in danger. What else did the latest Commissioner’s survey find?Of the young people aged 16 to 21 who were surveyed, many said it had become normal to see violent content that depicted acts that are illegal or soon will be, such as content featuring strangulation or non-consensual sex.Alarmingly, 58% of respondents had seen porn depicting strangulation, before they turned 18, and 44% reported seeing a depiction of rape (specifically, receiving sex whilst asleep).Many agreed it had affected their behaviour towards one another, with some particularly concerned about the impact on attitudes towards women and girls.Almost half (44%) of those surveyed agreed with the statement “girls may say no at first but then can be persuaded to have sex”. Girls were more likely to agree with the statement than boys.Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza said: “My first report into children’s exposure to pornography two years ago offered damning proof of the scale of the problem we needed to solve.“Today’s research highlights how little has changed in two years: violent pornography is easily accessible to children, exposure is often accidental and often via the most common social media sites, and it is impacting children’s behaviours and beliefs in deeply concerning ways.”Dame de Souza continued that the new protections introduced in July by Ofcom, part of the Online Safety Act, “provide a real opportunity to make children’s safety online a non-negotiable priority for everyone: policymakers, big tech giants and smaller tech developers”.But there is more to be done. She added: “Technology is evolving at incredible speed, but so are the risks it poses for the children using it. Our response – and our regulation – must match its pace.”The average age a child first sees pornography is 13 years old – boys are more likely than girls to report seeing porn, according to the research. More respondents said they saw pornography online by accident (59%) than those who deliberately sought it out (35%). Networking and social media sites accounted for eight out of the 10 main sources children accessed porn. Under the Online Safety Act, online services such as social media sites or search engines must now put in place safety measures to prevent children from viewing pornographic and other harmful content, too.What needs to change?While the implementation of the Online Safety Act will help to reduce children’s exposure to this kind of content, the Commissioner has set out a number of recommendations in her report to tackle the evolving harms to young people.These include: establishing the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) as a regulator of pornographic content, ensuring the same legal standards apply across online and offline porn.Additionally, she wants to see the closing of VPN loopholes so children can’t bypass age check protections put in place by the Online Safety Act; as well as a ban of depictions of strangulation in porn.Help and support:Rape Crisis services for women and girls who have been raped or have experienced sexual violence - 0808 802 9999Survivors UK offers support for men and boys - 0203 598 3898Related...UK Porn Age Verification Is Here – But What If We’re Sending Teens Somewhere Worse?1 In 3 Parents Regret Skipping ‘The Talk’ – Here’s How To Speak To Your Child About PornI Teach A College Course On Porn. The Response Has Been Eye-Opening.

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