SYDNEY, March 9 (Reuters) – Virtual private networks (VPNs) were among Australia’s most downloaded smartphone applications, usage data showed, while one of the world’s largest pornography distributors said it was blocking users as the country rolled out sweeping online age-restrictions on Monday.
After becoming the first country to impose a nationwide ban on teenagers using social media last December, Australia joined Britain, France and dozens of U.S. states requiring websites which disseminate pornography to verify users are over 18. App stores must also run age checks before allowing downloads of software labelled 18+.
Australia’s law also includes a requirement for artificial intelligence-powered chatbot services to keep certain text-based content – including pornography, extreme violence and self-harm and eating disorder material – from minors or face fines of up to A$49.5 million ($34.49 million).
“A child today can’t walk into a bar and order a drink, they can’t stroll into a strip club or browse an adult shop or sit down at a blackjack table in a casino,” eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
“This just really brings … those protections that we put for kids in place to the digital realm.”
On Monday, three of the 15 most downloaded free smartphone apps were VPNs, a chart published by iPhone maker Apple showed. The most downloaded VPN, called VPN – Super Unlimited Proxy, ranked ahead of any social media platform, the chart showed.
VPN – Super Unlimited Proxy did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. All internet-connected devices carry an individual code which discloses their location, and VPNs hide the user’s location by assigning a new code to the device.
When Britain forced internet companies to verify user ages before supplying pornography in 2025, VPN downloads also spiked, according to media reports.
Canada-based Aylo, owner of a vast network of pornography websites, meanwhile blocked Australians from accessing the platforms RedTube and YouPorn, while presenting a version of Pornhub without explicit content. All the websites carried a banner saying it was “not currently accepting new account registrations in your region”.
Aylo did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. The Sydney Morning Herald quoted an Aylo spokesperson saying the company’s Australian users would be “presented with a safe-for-work experience when they view our platforms”.
Age-restriction in Australia and Britain “does not effectively protect minors, and instead creates harms relating to data privacy and exposure to illegal content on non-compliant platforms”, the Herald quoted the spokesperson saying.
($1 = 1.4351 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Byron Kaye; Editing by Stephen Coates)
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