A reminder that hosting content on clouds you don't control can never be entirely safe. GitHub is now enforcing their policies against adult content:

This is insanity. Depicting a character being strangled in a movie or TV-show is a-okay. But if that character is naked then suddenly it's illegal? This amendment makes no distinctions between fiction and reality.

The fact that artists constantly have to worry about the how platforms will judge the morality of their fictional drawings is, quite frankly, ridiculous. If artists could host content on their own platform and still be discoverable, then it would stop this chilling effect caused by draconian terms.

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported us in our campaign thus far! Unfortunately, it does not seem like we will meet the goal that would have allowed us to dedicate a full amount of time to developing WhyCloud. However...

We noticed there has been some confusion over what WhyCloud is and how it helps creators to resist censorship, so we made some videos to help explain it! Follow us for more information and anti-censorship news!

Age verification laws silence creators into submission at the risk of being sued. Even worse, the age verification lobby is pushing for expensive and invasive always-active age verification, and legislation such as Tennessee's age-verification bill requiring re-validation every hour support this.

Mike Stabile@mikestabile.bsky.social · 11mo ago

For-profit age-verification providers are now pushing for "continuous biometric monitoring" — AI scans of your face, your voice, your behavior — while you're online to protect children. Every session. Every website. Every keystroke. Monitored and recorded.

Only united can we stand against the wave of creative censorship that has been sweeping over the internet. That is why we are pleased to announce that we now have a community Discord! discord.gg/mFu6XXC9QU

Have YOU read the terms of the platforms you use? It's not just a story, we know of a game developer who had their entire corporate Google account nuked overnight - simply for sharing nude artistic references. No recovery, no chance to appeal. Even their email was gone.

It's devastating to see creatives forced to censor the content they are passionate about creating simply to keep the lights on. Unless we work together and support a decentralized solution such as WhyCloud, we WILL see more creators being forced into this position.

Mariah@anthrobrand.com · 11mo ago

Development on Midnight Release has been paused. This sucks but I have to put the needs of my staff first. The patreon will stay up, and be filled with new NSFW content, and we will be pivoting to a sfw furry game. Paying my people is important and I don't want anyone at the studio to lose income.

In just 2 days we've already raised almost 12% of our goal! We need your help to keep up the momentum! A world where creators don't need to worry about their life's work being deleted, where creators don't need to live in fear that their next image will trip the censors. We can do it!

Only together can we cloud out the eye of censorship and defend our right to create without fear! With WhyCloud, it will be impossible for the livelihoods of creators to be upended simply because card networks decided to turn their gaze upon a single, centralized platform.

It's time we fight back against censorship from payment processers. Introducing WhyCloud - a free, open-source tool that aims to empower anyone to be able to host their own site and process payments - all in three simple steps. With your help, we can take back creative control! igg.me/at/whycloud/

WhyCloud - Create Fearlessly

Sick of platforms restricting your art? WhyCloud gives you the power to host content on your terms. | Check out 'WhyCloud - Create Fearlessly' on Indiegogo.

igg.me

What began with Steam being initially willing to platform "anything legal" has slowly tightened into making adult game developers second-class citizens. No matter how well-meaning centralized platforms may be, their very nature inevitably makes them vulnerable to censorship. t.co/WgcNWUk4k0

Steam’s Early Access just got stricter — and adult games are the target

Quiet policy changes mean some story‑driven titles will never make it to Early Access, as payment processor influence is raising questions about who decides what content is allowed.

windowscentral.com

Online censorship continues to be a threat to creative freedom. The only way to avoid these draconian policies is to host your own Personal Data Server, which only those with technical knowledge can do. Though not part of our MVP, WhyCloud lays the foundation to enable anyone to host themselves.

Muepin 🌶😈@muepin.art · 11mo ago

The bad news keep coming These go into effect Oct 15th

This exact reason is why centralized platforms like Steam and Itchio can never be the solution. As long as their site uses standard card processing, they will always be vulnerable to platform pressure. SubscribeStar does it right by having two completely different sites.

rahaeli@rahaeli.bsky.social · 12mo ago

As a note, routing payment for adult content through a separate processor at the provider level and using a non-high-risk processor for the rest is a violation of the merchant agreement of every single merchant gateway and payment processor I've ever evaluated, ever.

Creators are under siege. Payment processer overreach is already stifling creative expression on the internet, forcing platforms like Steam, Patreon and ItchIO to censor content. But it doesn't need to be this way, and we have the solution: WhyCloud