Vance warned last year that the U.K. could go down a “very dark path” of censorship with this law, saying the U.S. went down this path under the Biden administration. The U.K.’s use of Virtual Private Networks has increased after the Online Safety Act passed last year, prompting some U.K. ministers to float a possible ban on VPNs. Doescher downplayed the idea that the U.K.’s clampdown on internet use is similar to Iran’s, though a ban on VPNs would put the U.K. in the company of countries like North Korea that have enacted such bans. You are a separate country, you have certain prerogatives,” Doescher said. Beginning Feb. 2, Pornhub will no longer accept new users.