OnlyFans probe uncovers shock claims in Devon and Cornwall

Dozens of crimes linked to OnlyFans have been reported to Devon and Cornwall Police in the last five years, an exclusive Mirror investigation has revealed. The 36 crimes include allegations of revenge porn, where the victim claims that intimate video or photographs were posted online without their consent.

One man reported that his ex-partner posted a video on OnlyFans of them having sex, and he “doesn’t want the video on the website and didn’t give permission for it to be posted”. They also include claims of attempted blackmail or sextortion where victims were allegedly asked to pay money or provide more explicit material.

One crime report alleged that an OnlyFans model was being “blackmailed for free content… otherwise suspect will share images of victim to victims friends and family”. Another victim was contacted by someone she doesn’t know on social media and told “if she does not send sexually explicit videos of herself they will expose the fact that she has an OnlyFans account”.

OnlyFans, which is a British-founded company, has grown to a £5bn a year industry, fuelled by DIY pornography and stunts of “creators” like Bonnie Blue who was filmed having sex with more than 1,000 men in 24 hours.

Through Freedom of Information Act requests, the Mirror found that police are being asked to investigate claims of rapes linked to the making of videos for the site, along with allegations of blackmail, stalking, harassment, child abuse material and threats of violence. OnlyFans is not responsible for the alleged crimes and works closely with law agencies around the world to protect users.

In one report, an offender had hacked a victim’s OnlyFans account and demanded £100, threatening “if the payment is not received then he would share these photos and videos on social media”.

Meanwhile, one report includes an allegation of “child porn”, with a female offender uploading content of her and her partner onto the OnlyFans website when she was only 17, despite this being strictly against the site rules.

The crimes reported to Devon and Cornwall Police had resulted in just one charge or summons. In 11 cases, the investigation was closed with no suspect identified. In eight cases, the suspect was identified but the victim did not support police action, while in seven cases the suspect was identified but evidential difficulties prevented further action.

OnlyFans has revealed it has had nearly 180 legal requests from UK law enforcement in the last two years and a spokesperson said: “OnlyFans works closely with law enforcement agencies around the world.

“Unlike other platforms, OnlyFans knows the legal identity of all its users so is uniquely placed to support investigations. This approach means OnlyFans is an extremely hostile environment for anyone seeking to abuse our platform.”

The Mirror asked every police force how many crimes had been reported to them which referred to OnlyFans.
38 out of 45 UK police forces responded and revealed there had been 1,613 crime reports where the OnlyFans was recorded in the “modus operandi” – where officers record details of the crime.

This includes some alleged crimes that cannot be directly linked to the site – the suspect may have only threatened to post material on OnlyFans or the crime report may have just noted that either the suspect or alleged victim is a user of the site.

Twenty-seven forces provided some details of the individual crime reports and they paint a disturbing picture of the chaos connected to the rise of the platform which claims to have more than four million “creators” and over 300 million “fan” accounts.

They include at least ten cases of women claiming they are being forced to perform sex work on the platform by their controlling partners. There were 21 reported rapes where OnlyFans was mentioned and more than a dozen cases which refer to involvement of under 18s using the OnlyFans in breach of site rules.

OnlyFans CEO Keily Blair said in 2023: “We know the age and identity of everyone on our platform. No children allowed, nobody under 18 on the platform.” OnlyFans has said it tightened its procedures in 2022, requiring proof of consent from all who feature in explicit content.

Across the UK, the Mirror was given the outcome of more than 1,250 reported crimes. Of those, 38 investigations were ongoing but just 52 – around 4% – resulted in someone being charged or summonsed. There were 20 police cautions and 16 cases which ended in a community resolution.

But more than three in five cases ran into “evidential difficulties”. The largest number, 30% of cases, ended with the suspect identified but the alleged victim not supporting police action.

Three in ten cases were closed without a suspect being identified. It appears that the number of crimes reported are increasing. From the forces which provided numbers of reported crimes each year, they had risen by 256% from 2020 to 2023, the most recent year available.

A Devon & Cornwall Police spokesperson said: “Offences such as these are an extremely serious matter and the impact on victims can be devastating and long-lasting.

“Devon & Cornwall Police is committed to tackling misogyny, preventing and identifying violence against women and girls and improving outcomes for them, as well as tackling the perpetrators.

“We remain as committed as ever to reducing sexual violence and predatory behaviour, and to protecting women and girls from harm.

“We will continue to raise awareness of these types of offences with our staff and officers to ensure that victims are listened to, supported, and investigations are conducted as effectively as possible.

“We encourage anyone who has been a victim of these offences to have the confidence to come forward and contact Devon & Cornwall Police. We are here to help and have officers trained to support you.

“To report a crime, please contact police via our website here or by calling 101. If it is an emergency, call 999.”

A National Police Chiefs’ Council spokesperson said: “It’s important that victims understand that these are serious crimes and feel confident in reporting offences to the police so that action can be taken.

“Tech-enabled crimes continue to evolve at pace, and policing alone cannot keep people safe online. It’s vital that under the Online Safety Act technology companies are held to account for the role they should play in removing harmful content from their platforms and working with law enforcement to stem the tide of online sexual abuse.

Jess Phillips, Safeguarding Minister, said: “Our work to halve violence against women and girls in a decade is hugely important, which is exactly why we are cracking down on platforms providing safe haven for criminals online.”

Support available

If you have been affected by this article there is support available.

You can visit victimcare-dc.org to access support services and information on your rights and how to navigate the criminal justice system.

You can also call Victim Support on 0808 1689 111 or Devon and Cornwall Police’s Victim Care Unit on 01392 475900.

Advice and support can also be found at:

National Rape Crisis Helpline 0808 802 9999

Devon and Cornwall Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARC) 0300 3034626

For more information please visit: www.dc.police.uk/Rape-SexualAssault