OnlyFans is often credited with revolutionizing the porn industry. Nonetheless, many sex workers on the site are left feeling "violated."

This is not due to the nature of their work—selling sexual imagery on the pay-to-view platform—merely instead, because users are viewing their content so getting refunds via fraudulent chargebacks.

The creator, non OnlyFans, is left to reimburse the money when a customer disputes a payment with their credit card company, despite the scammer already having accessed their content.

Claire, who sells explicit photographs on the site, has had to pay back coin later on beingness told the transaction was fraudulent in "effectually 10 different instances." She also believes this is virtually to happen once more to the melody of $700.

"I know that sounds weird," she tells Newsweek. "Simply sometimes y'all can kind of selection upward when somebody is nigh to do information technology considering they cake yous on everything afterward a while after spending a lot of money."

She says these chargebacks, which tin come through up to half dozen months after, make her "feel violated."

"I feel unheard and my income is beingness taken away. This is my only income right now, so sometimes I have to worry: 'Oh, is this guy going to make me lose my medicine this month?'" she adds.

OnlyFans take a 20 percent cut of all content, still Claire explains: "The site doesn't really protect u.s.a. at all confronting people who do chargebacks, when somebody will call their bank and say, 'Hey, I didn't actually purchase this.'

"And then immediately, you lot know, the money is taken from our accounts, fifty-fifty if they paid u.s.a. and received a service like a custom album. OnlyFans doesn't practise annihilation to protect us. In fact, they really seem to protect the scammers in that instance."

While OnlyFans is house about not offering refunds, its site reads: "If a User seeks a chargeback or dispute from their credit carte du jour company, the User'due south access to OnlyFans may be discontinued or express. If you believe your account has been limited in error, delight contact support.

"Any amounts that Users seek to refund or chargeback will exist reported to the Creator and will be removed from the Creator'south income."

"A worker's rights issue"

Only why exercise sex workers have to pay back the coin themselves when, legitimate fraud or not, someone has viewed their content?

Myles Jackman, a British obscenity lawyer who specializes in cases related to pornography, tells Newsweek: "Nosotros should look at this as purely a worker's rights result. The content creators themselves have a legitimate revenue stream then they shouldn't be persecuted for the actions of their subscribers."

According to Jackman, it is usually a case of: "Homo purchases sexual services, has a happy time, and so later on feels guilt, remorse and shame, and likewise the loss of money, and so tries to go the money dorsum."

"Platforms like OnlyFans really need to enhance their game, in terms of representing the rights of the performers in a much more proactive fashion," he adds.

Melonfarmerswife, a creator who frequently posts sexual content alongside her married man, says she has had three chargebacks.

She told Newsweek: "Every time I've reported it, they [OnlyFans] have basically said information technology'due south a fraudulent card—there's nil we tin do."

Although she has only lost up to $100 dollars she has "seen creators lose hundreds and hundreds of dollars, to thousands.... a lot of them do rely on the money to alive and then it does get quite scary for them."

But it's not but about the fiscal loss, information technology is likewise an issue of consent. These creators did not choose to permit their bodies be seen for gratuitous, and it tin can be upsetting to know that they accept inadvertently done and then.

OnlyFans creators forced to give refunds
OnlyFans creators have told Newsweek they have had to give refunds to customers afterward they have already seen their content. Getty Images/Newsweek

Melonfarmerswife explains: "I felt really sick when information technology happened to me, and I was very upset almost it at the time, because you exercise experience really violated. That'southward the start feeling you go, and I'thousand sure people will think that'due south strange given what we exercise."

OnlyFans told Newsweek that: "All chargeback requests are reviewed by OnlyFans officials to determine the legitimacy.

"To farther protect our Creators, a User tin can just chargeback in one case and and so they are blocked from the platform. We are constantly improving our policies to ensure Users and Creators are aptly protected."

Withal, Newsweek has viewed many Reddit threads of verified OnlyFans creators discussing the prevalence of the upshot.

In i post Candislicer explains: "I got a huge chargeback back in September for a guy that literally asked for photos, spent a few hundred and months later I got a chargeback for the entire thing fifty-fifty though I had screenshots of the chat confirming he wanted them."

In another Misensepai reveals: "Someone bought about $1k worth of content from me over time and now all of the transactions have go chargebacks. I feel then violated and used and unsupported by OnlyFans."

Xoxolustxoxo responded: "I tin't understand how he was able to dispute that much, and I agree it's really gross how Onlyfans does nothing to protect their creators. That'south the main reason I've been thinking of deleting my account lately."

Catherine Stephens, an activist for the International Union of Sex Workers (IWUS) has been a sex worker for over 19 years.

Speaking to Newsweek she describes the issue of chargebacks equally existence like to the dangers that accept always plagued the darker side of the sexual practice manufacture: "It'due south the aforementioned one-time story. You'll get people who will lull people into a sense of prophylactic with the intention to practise harm, whether it's kind of financial harm, emotional harm, psychological harm, or up to and including rape or robbery."

Stephens besides explained that the reason why this may not exist taken seriously is due to the "hostile policy environments" and "hostile media environments" surrounding the sex industry.

She says: "There's a lot of accent on the sexual practice role of the sex industry rather than the trade part of it. And, actually, this isn't virtually 'boobies', it's about somebody getting ripped off through an online platform."

The rising of OnlyFans

Since its launch in 2016, OnlyFans has become increasingly mainstream. The company is the abstraction of British businessman Tim Stokely, who previously created adult performance websites GlamGirls and Customs4U, and the bulk shareholder is Leonid Radvinsky, an entrepreneur backside the porn site MyFreeCams.

Although the platform was originally a identify to view adult content, at that place has been a shift towards influencers and celebrities using the site. In March 2020 OnlyFans was name-checked in a Beyoncé lyric and, a few months afterwards, Disney star Bella Thorne created an account.

The actress made $1 1000000 in the commencement 24 hours, and by the end of the week her earnings had topped $2 million. Following this, OnlyFans imposed a cap on tips causing outrage among sex workers. Many accused the star of "gentrifying" a platform that was a lifeline for sex workers, peculiarly during the pandemic.

Alexandra LaRue, chapter director at Sex activity Workers Outreach Project United states of america (SWOP USA) told Newsweek that the chargebacks don't touch on "celebrities like Bella Thorne who make v figures, only they do hurt everyday folks trying to keep their lights on or clothing on their children'south backs.

"OnlyFans doesn't retrieve we're watching, but nosotros're more than observing. They'd be wise to straighten up before a mass exodus. "