OnlyFans creators’ DMCA requests expose hacked government sites
7 reported
A new analysis from cybersecurity firm UpGuard reveals that DMCA takedown requests filed by adult content creators have inadvertently identified more than 2,000 compromised government and university domains across 80 countries. The requests, made over the past 15 years, target pages where scammers have hijacked official .gov and .edu websites to host malicious content using the names of OnlyFans models and other adult creators as bait. UpGuard’s research, shared with WIRED, shows a dramatic increase in such hijackings since 2020, linked to individual adult creators and leaked OnlyFans content. The fraudsters exploit website vulnerabilities to upload pages that redirect visitors to scammy URLs, potentially earning money through advertising schemes. While the DMCA requests help creators protect their copyrighted material, experts note that copyright law may be an inappropriate tool for addressing hacked official sites. The analysis found 384,286 takedown requests covering 631,193 URLs from adult content creators to government and education websites since 2011, with the vast majority sent in recent years.
What’s reported
More than 2,000 domains belonging to governments and education institutions across 80 countries have received copyright takedown requests linked to adult content creators over the past 15 years.
UpGuard’s research says there has been a “dramatic” increase in hijackings related to individual adult creators and their “leaked” OnlyFans content since 2020.
Scammers hijack official .gov and .edu websites to upload malicious pages and PDFs pushing claims of free movie downloads, iPhones, porn, and Fortnite skins, often linking to scams or malware.
Pollock’s analysis says there have been 384,286 takedown requests, covering 631,193 URLs, from adult content creators to government and education websites since 2011.
Google appears to have removed around 130,000 of these URLs, with no action taken against 460,000.
Estonia-based Rulta has made around 90 percent of the requests in the past couple of years, according to UpGuard’s analysis.
A Google spokesperson says its anti-spam protections are “highly effective” at stopping hacked webpages from appearing in top search results.
Key figures
Laura Lux, adult content creator who primarily posts on OnlyFans
Greg Pollock, director of research at UpGuard
Dan Purcell, founder and CEO of Ceartas, a firm that helps creators remove pirated content online
Jennifer Urban, clinical professor of law at UC Berkeley
Alexander Small, cofounder at Fanlock, a creator-founded removal company
A Google spokesperson (not named)
Sources: Wired
