Financial censorship: Difference between revisions
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'''Financial censorship''' is the practice of major [[payment processors]] refusing to process transactions for entities that do not align with their values. | '''Financial censorship''' is the practice of major [[payment processors]] refusing to process transactions for individuals or entities that do not align with their values. Although some banks and processors must comply with the law by avoiding known criminal activity, some institutions take a heavy-handed approach in this regard, leading to the censorship of legal adult content,<ref>{{Cite web |last=EFF |title=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/02/legal-censorship-paypal-makes-habit-deciding-what-users-can-read |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/02/legal-censorship-paypal-makes-habit-deciding-what-users-can-read}}</ref> medical marijuana advocacy,<ref>{{Cite web |last=CNBC |date=2018 |title= |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/22/wells-fargo-closes-bank-account-of-candidate-who-supports-marijuana.html}}</ref> and other incidents. Companies like PayPal have a long history of censorship; although, when major payment processors such as Visa and Mastercard censor individuals or business entities, they effectively ban those people from engaging in payment transactions at all. This is due to their dominant position in global finance with no widely-adopted alternative. | ||
==Notable incidents== | ==Notable incidents== | ||
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===Itch.io=== | ===Itch.io=== | ||
In July 2025, [[Itch.io]], a platform for many indie games, delisted "all adult {{Wplink|Not safe for work|NSFW}} content" from their storefront. Later that month, they restored all NSFW games, as long as they're free. Currently, they are in negotiations with payment processors to start restoring some paid titles, but they have acknowledged that this will see some titles permanently removed from the platform. | In July 2025, [[Itch.io]], a platform for many indie games, delisted "all adult {{Wplink|Not safe for work|NSFW}} content" from their storefront. Later that month, they restored all NSFW games, as long as they're free. Currently, they are in negotiations with payment processors to start restoring some paid titles, but they have acknowledged that this will see some titles permanently removed from the platform. | ||
===Wikileaks, 2011=== | ===Wikileaks, 2011=== | ||
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From Visa, Mastercard, Bank of America, PayPal, and Western Union.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reuters |first= |date=2011 |title=WikiLeaks says "blockade" threatens its existence |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-wikileaks-idUSTRE79N46K20111024/}}</ref> | From Visa, Mastercard, Bank of America, PayPal, and Western Union.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reuters |first= |date=2011 |title=WikiLeaks says "blockade" threatens its existence |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-wikileaks-idUSTRE79N46K20111024/}}</ref> | ||
==PayPal== | ==PayPal== | ||
''Main article:'' [[PayPal]] | ''Main article:'' [[PayPal]] | ||
===COVID misinformation, 2022=== | ===COVID misinformation, 2022=== | ||
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"The new policy, which said customers could have to pay damages of $2,500 for each violation, was supposed to go into effect on Nov. 3, the reports said."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reuters |date=2022 |title=PayPal says policy to fine customers for 'misinformation' was an 'error' |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/paypal-says-it-never-intended-fine-users-misinformation-bloomberg-news-2022-10-10/}}</ref> | "The new policy, which said customers could have to pay damages of $2,500 for each violation, was supposed to go into effect on Nov. 3, the reports said."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reuters |date=2022 |title=PayPal says policy to fine customers for 'misinformation' was an 'error' |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/paypal-says-it-never-intended-fine-users-misinformation-bloomberg-news-2022-10-10/}}</ref> | ||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
Revision as of 16:54, 26 August 2025
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Financial censorship is the practice of major payment processors refusing to process transactions for individuals or entities that do not align with their values. Although some banks and processors must comply with the law by avoiding known criminal activity, some institutions take a heavy-handed approach in this regard, leading to the censorship of legal adult content,[1] medical marijuana advocacy,[2] and other incidents. Companies like PayPal have a long history of censorship; although, when major payment processors such as Visa and Mastercard censor individuals or business entities, they effectively ban those people from engaging in payment transactions at all. This is due to their dominant position in global finance with no widely-adopted alternative.
Notable incidents
This section is incomplete. This notice can be deleted once all the placeholder text has been replaced.
Steam
In July 2025, Steam, an online platform and digital marketplace for video games and related computer software and assets, added a new rule to their publishing guidelines against "in particular, certain kinds of adult only content", and proceeded to withdraw hundreds of titles from sale on the platform.[3]
Itch.io
In July 2025, Itch.io, a platform for many indie games, delisted "all adult NSFW content" from their storefront. Later that month, they restored all NSFW games, as long as they're free. Currently, they are in negotiations with payment processors to start restoring some paid titles, but they have acknowledged that this will see some titles permanently removed from the platform.
Wikileaks, 2011
Famous whistleblower Julian Assange was censored in what he called a "financial blockade."
"Visa and MasterCard stopped processing donations for WikiLeaks in December 2010 after the United States criticized the organization's release of thousands of sensitive U.S. diplomatic cables from its embassies all over the world."
From Visa, Mastercard, Bank of America, PayPal, and Western Union.[4]
PayPal
Main article: PayPal
COVID misinformation, 2022
In 2022, PayPal enacted a policy to target misinformation during the COVID pandemic by charging a $2,500 fine to individuals.
"The new policy, which said customers could have to pay damages of $2,500 for each violation, was supposed to go into effect on Nov. 3, the reports said."[5]
See also
External links
- https://www.eff.org/issues/financial-censorship
- https://www.change.org/p/stop-payment-processors-from-dictating-legal-purchases
- https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/987/text
References
- ↑ EFF. "https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/02/legal-censorship-paypal-makes-habit-deciding-what-users-can-read".
{{cite web}}: External link in|title= - ↑ CNBC (2018). https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/22/wells-fargo-closes-bank-account-of-candidate-who-supports-marijuana.html.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ Koselke, Anna (2025-07-18). "Valve confirms pressure from banks and card companies is to blame for the storefront axing adult Steam games: "Loss of payment methods would prevent customers from being able to purchase other titles"". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on 26 Jul 2025. Retrieved 15 Aug 2025.
Judging by the information available on SteamDB, over 100 games have been marked as "retired" from Valve's storefront in just two days – many of which are titles with adult-only content.
- ↑ Reuters (2011). "WikiLeaks says "blockade" threatens its existence".
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ↑ Reuters (2022). "PayPal says policy to fine customers for 'misinformation' was an 'error'".
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help)