Proton VPN moves from 174th to 19th place as NordVPN goes from 189th to 13th, as porn websites in Australia start requiring age verification for users Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Virtual private network apps have skyrocketed up the app charts in Australia after a number of adult sites began blocking Australian users in compliance with new online safety codes in effect from Monday. VPN Super Unlimited Proxy moved from 40th in free iPhone apps in Australia on 2 March to 7th place as of Sunday, according to the most recent data from Sensor Tower. Proton VPN moved from 174th to 19th, and NordVPN went from 189th to 13th. Continue reading...
SRCThe Guardian - World News
LANGEN
LEANCenter-Left
WORDS127
ENT5
MON · 2026-03-09 · 02:20 GMTBRIEF NSR-2026-0309-22700
NSR-2026-0309-22700News Report·EN·Technology
VPN apps rocket up download charts in Australia as porn websites begin blocking users
In Australia, VPN app downloads have surged following the implementation of new online safety codes on Monday that require age verification for access to adult websites. Data from Sensor Tower shows VPN Super Unlimited Proxy rising from 40th to 7th place in free iPhone apps between March 2nd and Sunday.
Josh Taylor Technology reporterThe Guardian - World NewsFiled 2026-03-09 · 02:20 GMTLean · Center-LeftRead · 1 min
The Guardian - World NewsFIG 01
Reading time
1min
Word count
127words
Sources cited
1cited
Entities identified
5entities
Quality score
100%
§ 01
Briefing Summary
AI-generatedNEWSAR · AI
In Australia, VPN app downloads have surged following the implementation of new online safety codes on Monday that require age verification for access to adult websites. Data from Sensor Tower shows VPN Super Unlimited Proxy rising from 40th to 7th place in free iPhone apps between March 2nd and Sunday. Similarly, Proton VPN jumped from 174th to 19th, and NordVPN climbed from 189th to 13th. This increase in VPN usage suggests Australians are seeking ways to bypass the new age verification measures being enforced by pornographic websites. The new codes are intended to protect users online.
Confidence 0.85Sources 1Claims 5Entities 5
§ 02
Article analysis
Model · rule-basedFraming
Technology
Legal & Judicial
Tone
Measured
AI-assessed
CalmNeutralAlarmist
Factuality
0.90 / 1.00
Factual
LowHigh
Sources cited
1
Limited
FewMany
§ 03
Key claims
5 extracted01
New online safety codes went into effect from Monday.
factual
Confidence
1.00
02
A number of adult sites began blocking Australian users.
factual
Confidence
1.00
03
VPN Super Unlimited Proxy moved from 40th to 7th place in free iPhone apps in Australia.
statisticSensor Tower
Confidence
1.00
04
NordVPN went from 189th to 13th in app charts in Australia.
statisticSensor Tower
Confidence
1.00
05
Proton VPN moved from 174th to 19th place in app charts in Australia.
statisticSensor Tower
Confidence
1.00
§ 04
Full report
1 min read · 127 words§ 05
Entities
5 identifiedKey playerOppositionContextPositiveNeutralNegative
Organizations4
Locations1
§ 06
Keywords & salience
9 termsvpn apps
1.00
australia
0.90
porn websites
0.80
age verification
0.70
nordvpn
0.60
proton vpn
0.60
online safety codes
0.60
virtual private network
0.50
app downloads
0.50
§ 07
Topic connections
Interactive graph Network visualization showing 51 related topics
View Full Graph Person Organization Location Event|Click node to navigate|Edge numbers = shared articles