United Kingdom: Office of Communications released guidance on age verification requirements for online adult content services

On 26 June 2025, the Office of Communications (Ofcom) released guidance outlining that providers of pornographic content should implement robust age verification by 25 July 2025, in accordance with the requirements of the Online Safety Act. This follows Ofcom’s April 2025 publication of the Protection of Children Codes and Children’s Risk Assessment Guidance, which requires platforms likely to be accessed by children to complete risk assessments within three months and enforce protective measures, including age assurance. Part 5 Services, which publish pornographic content including certain Generative AI tools, must act immediately, while Part 3 Services, which host user-generated adult content, have until 25 July 2025 to ensure full compliance. Acceptable age verification methods include facial age estimation, digital ID checks, or credit card verification to prevent access by individuals under 18 years of age.