Searches for VPN skyrocket in Utah after Pornhub blocked access to everyone in the state

There have been loads of people in Utah trying to get around Pornhub's new statewide block.

The adult film website took a stand against an incoming law that requires sites like theirs to ensure users go through an age verification system.

Most X-rated sites will simply ask you if you're over 18 or request your date of birth to ensure you're not doing anything illegal.

However, Utah's Governor recently signed a new bill that requires porn sites to do a bit more to ensure minors aren't accessing adult material.

To hit back against that, Pornhub decided to block anyone Utah from accessing the site, regardless of if they were 18 or older.

If you're in the state and try to access the site, you'll be greeted with a video featuring adult performer and member of the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee, Cherie DeVille.

DanieleC / Alamy Stock Photo

She says: “As you may know, your elected officials in Utah are requiring us to verify your age before allowing you access to our website.

"While safety and compliance are at the forefront of our mission, giving your ID card every time you want to visit an adult platform is not the most effective solution for protecting our users, and in fact, will put children and your privacy at risk.

She added: “In addition, mandating age verification without proper enforcement gives platforms the opportunity to choose whether or not to comply.

"As we've seen in other states, this just drives traffic to sites with far fewer safety measures in place. Very few sites are able to compare to the robust Trust and Safety measures we currently have in place.

"To protect children and user privacy, any legislation must be enforced against all platforms offering adult content. The safety of our users is one of our biggest concerns.

"We believe that the best and most effective solution for protecting children and adults alike is to identify users by their device and allow access to age-restricted materials and websites based on that identification."

Funnily enough, ever since that came into effect, the number of people searching for VPNs in the state of Utah has skyrocketed.

A VPN is a virtual private network and allows you to access parts of the internet that might be blocked because the service pretends you're in a different location.

Google Trends shows there was a 100 per cent increase in interest in people searching for VPNs in the 24 hours after the ban was announced.

This was also backed up by analysis from Cultural Currents, showing there was definitely a big increase in people wanting to get around Pornhub's ban.