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Age verification legislation is sweeping across the world, with millions now having to submit sensitive personal information to access certain sites and adult content online.
While the measures are designed to protect children from seeing harmful content, concerns have been raised about the privacy risks of age checks.
But can VPNs protect your privacy during age checks? Yes and no – it's not a straightforward answer. Below I'll detail what protections a VPN can offer, and what they can't.
What a VPN can protect
VPNs encrypt your data, shielding your internet activity from the prying eyes of third-parties, your internet service provider (ISP), and government surveillance.
When it comes to age verification, these third-parties won't know you've used a site or app that requires age verification – as long as you're connected to a VPN server.
X, Reddit, and Telegram are popular sites that require age verification in certain regions, alongside most major adult entertainment sites.
Anyone monitoring your internet traffic won't be able to see any of the information you enter when you're connected to a VPN either. And once the verification process has been completed, your traffic will remain private when being tunneled through a VPN server.
Leading VPNs are beginning to offer full privacy suites, growing beyond simple VPN protections. NordVPN, Surfshark, and ExpressVPN all have premium plans that include extra cybersecurity features.
NordVPN boasts Threat Protection Pro, the NordPass password manager, encrypted cloud storage, and NordProtect ID theft protection. Surfshark offers antivirus and the Incogni data removal service. ExpressVPN now has five apps in one plan. Its most premium plans include ExpressVPN, ExpressMailGuard, ExpressKeys, and Identity Defender – with ExpressAI coming soon.
Should the worst happen and your personal data be stolen from an age verification service, VPNs have features in place to mitigate the cybersecurity risks. ID theft protection features can monitor the Dark Web for appearances of your data, there's millions of dollars in ID theft insurance available, credit monitoring, and dedicated case managers to handle your claim.
The cybersecurity risks posed by age verification checks are one of the biggest reasons critics are opposing the laws. But certain VPN subscriptions will equip you with the tools to combat any data breaches.
What a VPN can't protect
VPNs aren't silver bullets. They don't grant you total anonymity, and they won't protect you from absolutely every danger you could face online.
The same goes for age verification. Using a VPN doesn't mean age checks become 100% private. An age check provider, such as AgeGo, Yoti, or Persona, is going to see the data you hand over, and know who you are.
The most common forms of data required to prove your age are credit card information, government IDs, and live selfies. The age-check company will see this data, verify it, and in most cases, store it for a limited time.
The length of time your data is held varies between companies. For example, Yoti says it deletes your data as soon as age verification is complete. It stores it for up to 28 days if a manual review is required.
The longer data goes without being deleted, the greater the risk to user privacy and security. We have already seen one high-profile age verification-related data breach. In October 2025, Discord suffered a data breach, and hackers accessed the data from users who had requested a review of their age verification check result.
It's important to remember that any information you hand over or enter into a site can be used to identify you, VPN or not.
Why is VPN interest spiking?
The rise in age verification checks is raising awareness of the need for privacy, and millions are turning to VPNs for the first time.
But people are also exploring the possibility of VPNs being able to bypass age checks entirely. People have attempted to do this by connecting to a VPN server in a country where age verification laws haven't been implemented – however this hasn't been proven to be 100% effective.
Regardless of their use cases, VPNs are a vital tool for protecting online privacy. But it's important you choose the right one. Tom's Guide only recommends VPNs that are safe and secure, and won't put you at risk.
Don't be fooled by potentially unsafe, often free VPNs, that promise the world. Apart from the best free VPNs we recommend, "free" often means you're paying with your data – exposing you to more risks than simply completing an age check.
For most people, we'd recommend a paid VPN service. The best cheap VPNs are a great option for those just starting out and looking to spend as little money as possible. Surfshark is our favourite and costs $1.99 per month. PrivadoVPN is the cheapest premium VPN on the market right now, and you can grab a two-year deal for $1.11 per month.
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
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