UK's Online Safety Act Sparks VPN Surge: A Privacy vs. Censorship Showdown

The UK's new Online Safety Act, mandating age verification on websites to restrict minors' access to harmful content, has unexpectedly triggered a massive surge in VPN usage. ProtonVPN reported a more than 1400% increase in UK sign-ups. Users are circumventing age checks, raising concerns about privacy and censorship. Regulator Ofcom will assess compliance and enforce penalties, but this could lead to a UK version of the 'Great Firewall'.