An issue that has been floating around lately has been the suspension or shutting down of social media accounts due to the alleged breach of terms and conditions by the social media websites. I asked Kim Cums, sex worker, pornstar and social media extraordinaire to guide us through how she manages her “#NSFW” social media accounts so that she avoids them being such down.
Take it away, Kim……
KVA
________________________________________________
I have seen many tweets over the past months about sex worker social media accounts getting deleted. I have no doubt that these deletions are occurring and for many of us in the adult industry our first reaction is to scream “discrimination” from the rooftops. This reaction is understandable given the amount of stigma and discrimination that we do face when speaking or posting in the public sphere.
However, often times we forget our own responsibility when posting on social media. Those Terms and Conditions that you skip over? You need to read those if you plan on posting adult content or advertising your business via social media. Some sites simply do not accept adult content, while others allow it when your account is flagged appropriately. What constitutes Not Safe For Work (NSFW), Adult, or Sensitive Material varies from site to site as well. As a user of any type of social media or membership site, it is your responsibility to know what the posting restrictions are and if they apply to the content you intend to post.
Besides actually taking the time to read the pesky T&Cs, you may also need to set up your account using the full website version of the app you are using. Many of us set up our accounts using the mobile app only. The problem is that the mobile apps often do not always include the full set of account options. Full settings are often only accessible on the full web versions of these websites. These settings include not only ways to flag your account as containing adult content, but also privacy settings, another important thing to have a look at if you are in the adult industry. A notable exception to this general rule is Instagram because it was genuinely built to be a fully mobile app, but it’s also one of the least adult content friendly social media platforms.
Now that we have established what this blog post is about, let’s also discuss what it is NOT about:
- It is not a conversation about what you can get away with in private groups or in private profiles. I know a lot of sex workers get around the rules this way. However, all it takes is one disgruntled member in your group to report your account, and then you have lost months (if not years) of posts, and potentially thousands of followers. Remember: Once you break T&Cs you will not have much, if ANY recourse if your account is reported, so although you might be able to get away with things for a while, it’s probably not worth the risk if you are trying to build up content, brand yourself, etc. because you will be forced to constantly rebuild from scratch.
- It is not a conversation about how sexist and backwards it is that you cannot post nipples or nudity, but how you can show and threaten violence and rape without getting deleted. (I’m looking at you Facebook). Yes, these are real issues and they need addressing, but since I could write a whole book on how bodies should just be treated as bodies and not as offensive perpetually-sexual objects, and how the societal treatment of female nudity is a reflection of that attitude, I think we can leave that conversation for another day.
- It is not a conversation about whether these policies are discriminatory towards individuals and businesses in the adult industry. Although these restrictions can make it more difficult for an adult business to navigate, these policies are in place to “protect” the under 18s from seeing “offensive” material. They are also often in place due to the (genuinely) policies of payment processors like Visa and Mastercard. Hence, whether these sites are being deliberately discriminatory, trying to keep things “family-friendly”, or whether they are simply stuck due to external policies is a different discussion for a different day.
Therefore, this blog post is about how you can keep your social media account within the bounds of the currently existing T&Cs and Acceptable Use policies on some of the popular social media sites.
Websites are can be classed as either Adult Content Friendly or Family Friendly. However, sites that accept adult content are not without their own restrictions and there are some types of content that are never accepted. The first three sites discussed here accept adult content as long as your account/content is marked appropriately. These sites are Twitter, Tumblr, and Flickr. I will also briefly discuss Facebook and Instagram at the end of this post, as they are popular platforms for promotion, but are strict restrictions for adult content and do not provide any options for adult-only accounts. DeviantArt does not allow pornographic content, but they do allow mature content and nudity, and it is a good platform to share original photos.
How do I mark my account as containing adult content?
Quick Steps:
In the full web version of Twitter—> Settings —> Account —> Content —> Tick box “Mark media I tweet as containing material that may be sensitive” —> “Save Changes”
Steps for technology-challenged individuals:
- Log onto the full web-version of Twitter. Do not use the mobile version of the website. Do not use the app. The setting you need to check is only available on the full web-version.
- Click on your avatar/profile picture in the upper right hand corner of the screen. This should be visible next to your tweet button. Clicking on your avatar will take you to your settings page.
- Look at your setting options in the column on the left side of the page. “Account” should be automatically selected. If you are not on your account settings automatically, click on “Account” to go to these settings.
- Look for the section that says “Content”
- Click “Save Changes” at the bottom of the page
When do I need to do this?
From Twitter’s support page:
“If you upload Tweet media that might be considered sensitive content such as nudity, violence, or medical procedures, you should consider applying the account setting “Mark my media as containing sensitive content” by following the instructions below.”
For more Twitter information: https://support.twitter.com/articles/20169200
Tumblr
How do I mark my account as containing adult content?
Quick Steps:
Full web version of Tumblr —> Account —> Settings —> The blog you want to change settings on under “Blogs” in right column—> Directory —> Flag this blog as adult-oriented
Steps for technology-challenged individuals:
- Log into the full web version of Tumblr
- Click on the little button that looks like a person; this should bring up a drop down menu
- On the drop down menu, click on “Settings”
- On the right column, you will have a list of blogs listed under “BLOGS”. Click on the blog that you want to change the settings for. (Alternatively, this settings page should be accessible at https://www.tumblr.com/settings/blog/name_of_your_blog_here)
- Scroll down until you see “Directory”
- Slide on the setting that says “Flag this blog as adult-oriented”
When do I need to do this?
Tumblr is pretty open about what you can and cannot show, but if you are going to show anything with nudity or “adult-orientated” content you will need to flag your blog. You can read more about their NSFW policy here: https://www.tumblr.com/docs/en/nsfw. However, some content is simply not allowed at all, such as gore, beastiality, necrophilia, violence, harm to minors, glorifying self-harm, etc. There is a full list of unacceptable content under their community guidelines here: https://www.tumblr.com/policy/en/community
Flickr
How do I mark my account as containing adult content?
Quick Steps:
Avatar —> Settings —> Privacy & Permissions —> Defaults for new uploads —> What Safety Level and Content Type will your photostream have —> Edit button —> Which safety level will you normally need to put on your content? —> Restricted —> Save Changes
Steps for technology-challenged individuals:
- Log on to the full web-version. The Flickr app is absolutely hopeless. Hopeless.
- Find your avatar in the upper right corner and click to open the drop down menu
- Choose “Settings” from the drop down
- In “Settings”, click on the tab called “Privacy & Permissions”
- Scroll down to the section called “Defaults for new uploads”
- Find “What Safety Level and Content Type will your photostream have” and click on “edit”
- Under “Which safety level will you normally need to put on your content?”, choose “Restricted”
- Click “Save Changes”
When do I need to do this?
Their content restrictions are grey. Flickr keeps them deliberately grey, so that they can delete you without explanation. They state:
“Don’t forget the children.
- If you would hesitate to show your photos or videos to a child, your family, or a stranger on the street, that means you need to set the appropriate content filter setting. If you don’t, your account will be moderated and possibly deleted by Flickr staff” – https://www.flickr.com/help/guidelines
“1. Safety Level
- Safe – Content suitable for a global, public audience
- Moderate – If you’re not sure whether your content is suitable for a global, public audience but you think that it doesn’t need to be restricted per se, this category is for you
- Restricted – This is content you probably wouldn’t show to your mum, and definitely shouldn’t be seen by kids” – https://www.flickr.com/help/filters/#258
Flickr is a bit unique in that you do not have to mark your whole account as containing adult content. Therefore, you can post family-friendly type pictures and have them publicly visible for everyone to see, which is a major help when trying to get new followers. However, it is my suggestion that you set your default posting settings to “restricted”, then you will not have to worry about your pictures getting flagged by the conservative members of the community. Flickr’s favorite response is to delete accounts with violating pictures automatically. You will not get a warning, you will not get a chance to fix your settings, you will just wake up one morning and your account will be gone. Their deletions include any associated accounts as well, like e-mail addresses, so be sure to sign up with a secondary Yahoo! e-mail address so that they can’t touch it if they choose to delete your Flickr account (assuming you have a primary one! LOL). Play it safe.
** Also, if you want to see other member’s adult content, set your Safe Search off.**
DeviantArt
How do I mark my account as containing adult content?
Steps:
When adding a new deviation —> Edit your deviation —> Contains Mature Content —> Yes —> Choose “Moderate” or “Strict” and click appropriate tick boxes
When do I need to do this?
You need to do this if your photo you are uploading contains nudity, violence, sexual themes, strong language, or is ideologically sensitive. You can read more in the screenshot below. They are also very (refreshingly) specific about what they consider to be pornographic. A screenshot of restricted pornographic content is also included below.
Facebook and Instagram
Censor anything that is as offensive or more offensive than the female nipple. Most importantly, don’t have any fun.
__________________________________________________
Thank you to Kim Cummms for such an informative post. If you have any questions for Kim, you can find her at @kimcummms. If you have any specific legal questions relating to the above, please contact me on @KateOnTheGo or on my email at kva@kvalegal.com.au.
KVA
kvalegal.wordpress.com 