Identity verification
Well... It happened...
I got a message last week to vertify my identity and age so I can continue uploading and getting paid here on Patreon. And don't take me wrong, I can understand some of the reasoning behind all this, but the method to give us your data or get the fuck out seems more like blackmail to me, treating us like possible criminals.
And we all know how safe and secure is to submit our information online is, especially to a company as Patreon with its questionable practices in the past.
They say the data is safe, but it only takes a change in management or current political views to readjust what do they do with this information. I'm sure this can't end up as a wall of shame for adult content creators, right?
We all know the old say that "information is power" and that goes a thousandfold nowadays. I was always cautious with my digital footprint, not leaking any accidental info of myself online, and now I feel like I just gave a loaded gun to someone I don't know or trust.
I may be a bit negative or paranoid here, but i'm worried. What do you guys think of this? A good idea? Or something shady?
Comments (36)
I think it should be illegal to use information in a way that contradicts the terms under which it was originally collected, regardless of a change in management or political views. There should be a law, if there isn't one already, that says that if information is collected under the condition that you will not do X with it, then you cannot use it for X, EVER, even if your policies change, unless the information is reacquired under different terms.
I think you're right. But I just can't shake this bad feeling out of my head. Maybe i'm just too paranoid, but nowadays every bad thing that can happen eventually happens.
I am not happy about it at all, but I verified my identity as well. They could have just asked for my credit card, which has already verified my ID. They absolutely don't need photos of me stored forever on their servers. It's absolutely unacceptable to me, and a major overreach. But there just isn't another valid alternative to Patreon yet. Subscribestar? I tried it for 3 months and didn't get a single subscription. Paypal doesn't allow any adult content, period. DeviantArt? They started restricting adult content way before Patreon did. The only other real option to me is to build your own website, but I barely have time to produce my content let alone manage a whole website on my own. :/
Yes, it's sad but all true what you say. I just really hope this will not backfire later.
This is a hard issue to deal with. Seems like its happening in more and more places and its starting to feel very repressive. Do what is best for you Sitri. If you move to somewhere else just let us know and I'll follow.
Thank you very much. I really appreciate your support :)
I left PayPal when they started un-banking people for political reasons. Moving is annoying but I know my government has no issue trying to force companies to give up information like that.
Yeah, I get what you mean. That's probably one of the reasons I refuse to do political stuff or be vocal about it. I have my opinion, but i'm not sure it's worth a ban. And if you mean the USA, then you're right. It has a recent feud with my coutry because our government refused to give out info about our certain citizens because we all know how well they handle confidental data.
So I looked into it a bit, it looks like they're asking because they use Mastercard to process pledges and Mastercard is requiring age verification for creators of "Adult" stuff. They did, however, have this on a bit about alternate ways to verify that you are over 18. "What if I don’t have a government-issued identification to submit? You’ve shared lots of ideas for how we can prioritize inclusivity throughout this process. With that in mind, we’re developing a list of alternative (non-government-issued) IDs we’ll be able to accept. If you’d like to go this route, there’s no action required immediately; we’ll share the list of acceptable alternative ID types, along with next steps, in the coming months." So if you wait for a bit you might be able to use something you find to be less worrying.
Yes, I found this option too. But it's not really clear when and how will this be implemented. They just might prevent me from withdrawing money or terminate my account before they start using it, and i'm worried about that. But thank you very much for taking the time and researching it for me. That was really nice from you.
Are they asking because of country laws, "state" laws, or because Patreon wants to know. That's my real question.
As far as I can understand the payment processors and bank card distributors are pressuring Patreon and other sites to do this or they stop doing business with them.
Give a fake id
It still needs a photo of myself taken in real time that needs to match the ID picture. But it would be nice :)
The bigger and more well-known a platform becomes, the more likely it has to bow to the rules of the brand or get caught up in the clutches of legislators. Unfortunately, the other continents also fail to be better at it but regularly fail through lobbying. I understand you very well, but I don't see a way out of it either.
Yes, I agree with you. And it's very worrying that the banks are forcing this specific ID process. We all heard what the British banks are doing to select between thir clients based on political beliefs and deny business with them. I think it only became public when they did this to a well known politician and it backfired.
Patreon has a legal requirement to check in many areas. I would at the very least make sure to edit out any information they have no business knowing, like your social security number.
I guess it's luck that in my country we have every important data on a different card like social security number.
I think you should be safe to do it,
Maybe?
Honestly if you needed to jump platforms, I'd follow! I love your work! 💜
Thank you very much, it means a lot to hear this :)
The only time I had to give that type of information was with colleges and certain websites that partner with the college to give supplies for the program. That for me is something were you contact a lawyer an ask them any ways to avoid sharing your information while still verifying your identity with patreon.
The only other place I was required to scan my ID was at PayPal.
I don't know what the right course would be in a situation like this. You've been a part of Patreon for years now and it seems asinine to be asking for your I.D. now. I'd try to just send them something that verifies your age, like your birth certificate, maybe? But I don't think I'd give any kind of photo I.D., you shouldn't be giving out that kind of info and you don't know if some Wise Guy working for the Patreon site might misuse it. These are my suggestions, but, like I said, I don't know what the right decision is here.
Yeah, sadly me neither. But the ID process is quite clear, two photo of the ID card and a photo of my face. I'm not sure what else can be done to keep my livelihood. It's agonizing.
That’s cool & all, but when’s the next comic update
I'm working on it. I have at least half of it ready for later Sunday, but the other half might come out around next week.
Don't give too much info and like someone else mentioned, covered your ID number so someone else can't copy your card.
Thank you.
These big tech plattforms are not trustworthy. The guidlines are intentionally vague so that you always walking on eggshells . Same on Youtube and Tik Tok. How often do you hear people get banned for bs? A recent example☝️, the Frontman of the Metal Band Falling in Reverse was banned from Tik Tok for "controversial" statements. What did he say you may ask. Quite simple women don't have to be insulted as cis women because a minority can't accept reality. But other disgusting shit stays on the Plattform, like these Pronoun shit. Which basically promotes mental illness. If you consider moving to another service i will follow. You are the only one i support anyway 💁♂️.
Yeah, things are areally going downwards nowadays. And thank you I really appreciate your support :)
Can you cover up your ID number? That's what I did when I was asked this on OF, and it was accepted.
Does that work when you take a direct photo of the card?
It all depends on perspective. I can understand that it is an issue not to know the age and thus "responsibility" of a person posting and getting paid on an app like this one. However, (I don't know if it's possible) I believe you can lie on your names and address no ?
Sadly no, unless I can convince someone to take my place for identification. I needed to photo my ID and then myself to match the ID picture.