Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza said a new report shows the share of young people who have seen pornography online has risen over the past two years. The study, based on responses from 1,020 people aged 16 to 21, found many encounters happen by accident and involve material described as violent, extreme and degrading. She called the findings “a snapshot of what rock bottom looks like” and said they reflect harm created by algorithms rather than active seeking by children. The report was published on 19 August 2025.

Among the findings, 58% said they had seen pornography involving strangulation and 44% described a depiction of rape, specifically where the person was asleep. The 1,020 respondents were aged 16 to 21. They said they first saw pornography at age 13 on average, with 27% reporting exposure at age 11 and some as young as six. Four in ten agreed that girls can be persuaded to have sex even if they initially say no, and those who had seen pornography were more likely to hold this view. They said 70% had seen online pornography before turning 18, up from 64% two years earlier. Boys 73% were more likely than girls 65% to report exposure. Sixty per cent said they encountered pornography by accident, up from 38% in 2023. The X platform, formerly Twitter, remained the most common source at 45%, compared with 35% on dedicated pornography sites.

The report coincides with online safety measures introduced last month, including age checks intended to limit access to pornography and other harmful content. Dame Rachel said the measures provide an opportunity to prioritise children’s safety for policymakers and tech firms of all sizes. Separately, the Molly Rose Foundation highlighted continuing harm from algorithms that push suicide, self-harm and depression content to young users. Its chairman Ian Russell said it is staggering that eight years after Molly’s death such content remains pervasive. The foundation has criticised Ofcom’s child safety codes and called for stronger, faster legislation. TikTok and Meta, which owns Instagram, have been contacted for comment.