Janice R. Andrews
Experts and investigators are becoming increasingly concerned about the challenge of quantifying the amount of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on the well-known adult content site OnlyFans. The site, which is well-known for its subscription-based content, poses particular difficulties because of its sophisticated paywall system, which restricts access to potentially hazardous content.
The UK-based business OnlyFans is not legally obligated to report possible child abuse to the National Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), a nonprofit organization in the United States that Congress has designated to handle such claims. The platform asserts, meanwhile, that users freely report to NCMEC’s CyberTipline. A representative for OnlyFans stated that 347 CyberTipline reports from “hundreds of millions of posts” were made by OnlyFans in 2023. They contend that this illustrates the strict safety measures on the platform.
Five experts in the field of online child sexual abuse expressed doubts about the actual scope of child sexual abuse on OnlyFans, notwithstanding these assertions. The platform’s unique paywalls for each of its 3.2 million contributors provide the biggest obstacle. There are multiple paywalls. Trey Amick, director of forensic consultants at Magnet Forensics Inc., a Canadian company that supports law enforcement in CSAM investigations, clarified that it’s a paywall for every donor.
If law enforcement authorities want to access content behind these paywalls, they must either acquire cooperation from OnlyFans or subscribe to the content, which presents substantial challenges. The details that are usually available without a subscription include the website link, a picture of the artist that isn’t explicitly visible, and some illustrative text. Beyond that, content hosted behind OnlyFans’ paywalls is quite tough to obtain, according to Amick.
When law enforcement asks OnlyFans for help in an investigation, the company gives them all the information they need, including direct messages, content, and account information. The OnlyFans representative guaranteed that police investigators were not required to subscribe to any content. Furthermore, since late 2023, NCMEC has had “full access” to the website behind its paywalls; however, this access is only available for accounts that have been reported to its CyberTipline or are connected to a case involving a missing child. NCMEC made it clear that it does not proactively watch over or evaluate content on any other website or behind OnlyFans’ paywalls on a large scale.
In 2021, OnlyFans appointed Michael Ward, a former prosecutor for the U.S. Justice Department who is currently at the law firm Baker Botts, as an independent third-party monitor in an attempt to improve safety protocols and transparency. The OnlyFans website states that Ward’s responsibilities include evaluating and analyzing the platform’s safety measures. Reuters contacted Ward, who declined to confirm his involvement or offer a statement.
The intricate paywall system of OnlyFans and the self-regulated reporting procedures on the platform present considerable obstacles to the impartial verification of the occurrence of CSAM. Even while OnlyFans insists it has strong security, careful examination is nevertheless hampered by the opaqueness of its content access. It is becoming more and more clear that measures that are both open and enforced are necessary as the discussion surrounding online child safety heats up.
To sum up, the millions of paywalls on OnlyFans present significant obstacles for investigators attempting to go through information about child sexual assault. Although the platform claims to have strict safety standards and voluntarily complies with reporting requirements, these are positive moves, but independent verification is still elusive. Strengthened cooperation among OnlyFans, law enforcement, and child protection organizations is essential to guarantee the security and welfare of those who are most vulnerable in the digital era.
