What You Should Know About OnlyFans' Terms of Service

If you're a content creator then you know social media platforms and online content subscription services constantly change the rules. A perfect example is when OnlyFans Terms of Service (TOS) changed on August 20, 2021, banning adult content according to Newsweek. Five days later, OnlyFans announced it had "suspended" its ban until October 1, 2021. October 1 has come and gone and adult content is still allowed.

This wasn't the first time this happened on the OnlyFans platform. In the spring of 2021, the website had creators scrambling to amend portions of their content after a sudden change in terms. Had they regularly used DoNotPay to scan OnlyFan's TOS, much of the confusion could have been avoided.

Why Do Tech Companies Change Their Terms of Services So Much?

The online and tech TOS ecosystem can be demanding and problematic to operate in. Whether you're a creator or a user, changes in TOS agreements can and do have serious implications if ignored or overlooked. However, creators are more affected by the risk of strikes against their accounts, blocked content, account restrictions, and even account suspension.

It's not always the user's fault. Some businesses think it's perfectly okay to change their TOS unilaterally. This holds especially true when it comes to larger companies like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and OnlyFans. What makes the leaders of these big online tech companies think it's okay to do this? To put it simply, it's been the industry-standard language for the contract drafting industry for a long time.

There is also the issue of government regulations continually changing not only in the United States, but in Europe, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and elsewhere. Businesses operating in the digital world have to honor regulations around the globe or find their websites blocked and services interrupted. Additionally, a company may be required to change its TOS after receiving a civil judgment resulting from a lawsuit.

How OnlyFans May Change Its Terms of Service

According to the OnlyFans website, this is how it may change its Terms of Service agreement:

• "…to reflect changes in laws and regulatory requirements which apply to OnlyFans and the services, features, and programs of OnlyFans where such changes require OnlyFans to change its terms and conditions in a manner which does not allow us to give reasonable notice to you."
• "...to address an unforeseen and imminent danger related to defending OnlyFans, Fans, or Creators from fraud, malware, spam, data breaches, or other cybersecurity risks."
• "We may also make other changes to any part of the Terms of Service, and we will give you reasonable notice of such changes by email or through OnlyFans, and you may contact us to end your agreement with us before the changes take effect. Once any updated Terms of Service are in effect, you will be bound by them if you continue to use OnlyFans."

Why Is It So Important to Scan TOS Agreements for Hidden Clauses?

As personal user data becomes one of the most valuable assets in business and marketing, more companies have started to collect and share personal information without clearly notifying the user or hiding their practices in the fine print where no one will notice.

Consumers themselves make it fairly easy for organizations to get away with such dubious practices because many of them couldn't be bothered with reading a 10- to 20-page TOS. This fact was proven by National Public Radio (NPR) in 2016. NPR's social science correspondent Shankar Vedantam and his team conducted a study to see how many Americans actually read TOS contracts before signing on the dotted line or clicking that box.

Vedantam told NPR in an interview that they decided to take it to the "extreme" by including a totally insane clause in the TOS: a "firstborn clause." This meant that by signing the contract, the signee agreed that they would give up their firstborn child as a form of payment for using the fake service provided.

Around 98 percent of those who participated in that study inadvertently agreed to hand over their firstborn — whether they scanned the document or not, they overlooked the most important clause in the TOS. And it's worth noting that under 30 percent even bothered to scan the document.

Scan the OnlyFans Terms of Service Page Periodically With DoNotPay

Through the "Analyze Terms and Services" product, you can scan any website and its terms of service and user agreements for legal violations. Once we identify hidden legal violations, DoNotPay will draft a demand letter on your behalf demanding compensation. If they fail to comply, the issue can be escalated to a Small Claims Court. All you have to do is:

1. Go to the Analyze Terms and Services product on DoNotPay.

2. Enter the website domain you would like to scan.

3. Wait for DoNotPay to identify any legal violations on the website (it should only take a few seconds!) If there are violations, proceed to drafting a demand letter.

4. Enter how much you want to receive in compensation and the company name.

5. Enter your contact information so the company can contact you.

And that's it! DoNotPay will generate a demand letter on your behalf with every legal violation we identified that you can send to the company. If they don't comply with your demand for compensation, you can escalate the case to Small Claims Court using our Sue Now product.

You can also scan these Terms of Service contracts using DoNotPay:

How to Check Websites for Violations on Their Terms of Service on Your Own

To scan websites for violations on their Terms of Service pages, you'll have to do the following:

1. Go to the website and locate the Terms of Service page.
2. Look for and identify any legal violations on both the Terms of Service page and other parts of the website.
3. If you identify any violations, it's time for you to draft a demand letter. If you don't have experience drafting demand letters, there are plenty of websites that offer demand letter templates.
4. Don't forget to mention how much compensation you want in your demand letter.
5. Send the demand letter via the postal service or by email to the company's legal department.

DoNotPay Can Help You Protect Your Rights

DoNotPay started out helping people take care of their parking tickets. Today, we help countless consumers fight for their rights. The Sixth Amendment of the Constitution not only guarantees the right to retain or appoint counsel but also the right to represent oneself. Self-representation simply requires possessing adequate knowledge of the law.

But since you may not have the time, DoNotPay helps you handle legal matters on your own and is a lot cheaper than hiring an attorney. Below are five ways we will help you fight for your rights:

1. Robocall Compensation
2. Fight Workplace Discrimination
3. Breach of Contract
4. File a Complaint Against Any Company
5. Standardized Legal Documents

If you have any questions about scanning terms of service or have a concern, please contact DoNotPay today!