The European Parliamentary Research Service has labeled VPNs a regulatory loophole that needs closing, warning that the privacy tools increasingly let minors bypass age-verification systems now required across the UK, several US states, and other jurisdictions. The EPRS notes VPN usage spiked after mandatory age-verification laws took effect, with VPN apps dominating UK download charts once the Online Safety Act provisions came into force.

England's Children's Commissioner has advocated restricting VPN access to adults only, though privacy advocates warn that requiring identity verification before using VPNs would undermine anonymity protections and create surveillance risks. The European Commission's own age-verification app recently faced scrutiny after researchers discovered it stored sensitive biometric images in unencrypted locations, exposing significant security gaps. France has emerged as a potential model with its "double-blind" verification system, which confirms age without revealing user identity to websites or exposing browsing history to verification providers.

Utah became the first US state to address this directly through legislation, defining user location by physical presence rather than IP address to prevent VPN circumvention. The EU may follow suit as it updates its Cybersecurity Act, potentially imposing child-safety requirements on VPN providers.