AO3 was founded partly in response to a growing trend of fanworks being removed from websites that had previously allowed them. Commercial entities have frequently permitted fanworks in the early stage of their existence in order to expand their userbase, only to later prohibit certain types of fanworks from being shared on their platform. This pattern has been observed numerous times throughout fandom history. We want AO3 to be a non-commercial space where creators are able to permanently preserve and freely share as many of their fanworks as possible.
-AO3 operates under the jurisdiction of Manhattan, New York in the United States. As such, the interactions between AO3 and its users, as well as the definitions in the TOS, will comply with U.S. legislative interpretations. If you reside in a different state or country, it is your responsibility – not AO3's – to know about and follow the laws in your local jurisdiction. For example, if certain content on AO3 is restricted under your local laws, it is not AO3's duty to delete that content for you; instead, it is your responsibility to avoid accessing that content.
-AO3 operates under the jurisdiction of Manhattan, New York in the United States. As such, the interactions between AO3 and its users, as well as the definitions in the Terms of Service, will comply with U.S. legislative interpretations. If you reside in a different state or country, it is your responsibility – not AO3's – to know about and follow the laws in your local jurisdiction. For example, if certain content on AO3 is restricted under your local laws, it is not AO3's duty to delete that content for you; instead, it is your responsibility to avoid accessing that content.
+An implied warranty of merchantability is a legal agreement between a seller and a buyer that goods will be reasonably fit for the general purpose for which they are sold. For example, if you buy a toaster, it should be able to toast bread. It doesn't have to be perfect, but it should function as a typical toaster would.
This warranty is governed in the United States by the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), which allows sellers to "disclaim" it. Disclaiming a warranty cancels the promise, which means the buyer takes on the risk that the product may not work as expected. By disclaiming this warranty about AO3, we are saying that you cannot hold us legally responsible if AO3 does not work as expected (in other words, you can't sue us).
-An implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose is a legal agreement that exists when a buyer relies upon the seller to provide goods to fit a specific request. For example, if you ask a salesperson for a pair of boots to hike in the snow, and they sell you boots based on that request, they are making a promise (warranty) that those boots will be good for hiking in the snow. The seller has to know two things: 1) the buyer has a specific need, and 2) the buyer is relying on their recommendation. If both of those conditions are met, this warranty applies.
This warranty is governed in the United States by the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC). Like the implied warranty of merchantability, sellers can disclaim it, thereby shifting the risk back to the buyer. By disclaiming this warranty about AO3, we are saying that you cannot hold us legally responsible if AO3 does not suit the purpose you wanted to use it for, even if we know why you wanted to use it and you are relying on our recommendation to use it. For example, if you want to use AO3 to post your fanworks, but you find that you don't like AO3's posting interface and prefer to use another fanwork site, you can't sue us because our site doesn't meet your needs.
-No, AO3 is and always will be free to use. We don't sell anything. We don't sell products to you, and we also don't sell advertisement space or user data to third parties. AO3 is run by the Organization for Transformative Works (OTW), a non-profit which is funded by donations, not sales or advertisements. However, U.S. law regarding services and contracts generally assumes that one party is a buyer and one party is a seller, even if the service being "sold" is free (as in our case). We use this standard language to make sure that we aren't promising you something that we can't provide.
+No, AO3 is and always will be free to use. We don't sell anything. We don't sell products to you, and we also don't sell advertisement space or user data to third parties. AO3 is run by the Organization for Transformative Works (OTW), a non-profit which is funded by donations, not sales or advertisements. However, United States law regarding services and contracts generally assumes that one party is a buyer and one party is a seller, even if the service being "sold" is free (as in our case). We use this standard language to make sure that we aren't promising you something that we can't provide.
+No. Selling, trading, or renting AO3 accounts to other users is a violation of our Terms of Service, and we reserve the right to ban such accounts and take action against the seller.
Official statements are communications made by volunteers while they are fulfilling their formal volunteering responsibilities. These can include news posts and comments from official accounts.
Comments from official accounts are only official OTW statements when the volunteer is both acting in their official OTW role and providing information about the OTW or any of its projects or policies. For example, a news post moderator using an official account to reply to a question about a news post is acting in an official capacity; however, a volunteer who is using an official account to reply to a comment on a "Five Things" post about them (which is about that volunteer's personal opinions) is not acting in an official capacity.
-This means that we can make the content you post on AO3 available to other people who use AO3, without paying you. We will never charge for access to AO3 or otherwise sell your content. You can also put your content on other sites if you want, or remove it from AO3 if you no longer want it here.
This refers to how your work is displayed on the site, not how it is written, drawn, or otherwise created. For example, we may display portions of your content on some pages of the site, such as by showing your work's summary and tags in search results. We may also make changes to the formatting or display of your content in order to adapt to the technical requirements of different networks or devices, or to improve accessibility. For example, we may automatically convert HTML tags to our standard forms (for example, changing <bold> html tags to <strong>) or allow you to use nonstandard fonts and formatting while providing an alternate format for accessibility.
+This refers to how your work is displayed on the site, not how it is written, drawn, or otherwise created. For example, we may display portions of your content on some pages of the site, such as by showing your work's summary and tags in search results. We may also make changes to the formatting or display of your content in order to adapt to the technical requirements of different networks or devices, or to improve accessibility. For example, we may automatically convert HTML tags to our standard forms (for example, changing <bold> html tags to <strong>) or allow you to use nonstandard fonts and formatting while providing an alternate format for accessibility.
No. We are not able to restore deleted content, regardless of whether you intended to delete it yourself. This includes works, comments, and accounts. If your account was deleted, you will need to request an invitation to create a new one.
+If one of your works was deleted, an automated email informing you of the deletion will be sent to the address associated with your account. A copy of the work will be attached to that email, which you can use to repost your work.
+The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) provides up-to-date details regarding all current embargoes (including but by no means limited to comprehensive trade embargoes) on their website. Princeton University has a list of countries that are comprehensively sanctioned by OFAC.
If we need to communicate with you to resolve an Abuse report, we will email you at the address associated with your AO3 account. If you do not check your email, or if you cannot receive emails because your email address is inaccurate or invalid, then we will have to resolve the complaint without your input. A sufficient number of sustained Abuse reports that fail to be delivered ("bounce") or do not receive a response could lead to permanent suspension.
If our emails to you repeatedly bounce, then we may suspend your account because we need to be able to communicate with you if necessary. In that situation, you can log in and get your account reinstated by associating it with a working email address. Then, if necessary, you can deal with whatever problem led to the Abuse report in the first place.
Having an invalid email address will not necessarily cause you to be suspended. However, if you violated the Terms of Service in other ways, those violations will not be excused just because you didn't receive our emails. It is your responsibility to ensure your email address is accurate and messages can be delivered to it. Repeated violations of the Terms of Service may result in a temporary suspension or a permanent ban, regardless of whether or not you were able to receive our emails warning you about the violations.
If we send a routine email about general site policies and it bounces, that will not lead to account suspension, but whatever policies we announce will still apply to all account owners. We will only suspend accounts with invalid email addresses when individual Policy & Abuse–related communications bounce.
-Creative Commons licenses allow people to use others' works under certain predefined conditions. The Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0) permits you to use material from our Terms of Service (including the Content Policy and Privacy Policy) for any purpose, as long as you meet all of the following requirements:
+Creative Commons licenses allow people to use others' works under certain predefined conditions. The Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0) permits you to use material from our Terms of Service (including the Content Policy and Privacy Policy) for any purpose, as long as you meet all of the following requirements:
An example of appropriate attribution would be: "This work uses material from AO3's Terms of Service, which was released under a CC BY 4.0 license."
-An example of appropriate attribution would be: "This work uses material from AO3's Terms of Service, which was released under a CC BY 4.0 license."
+Material in AO3's Terms of Service has been drawn from imeem and NearlyFreeSpeech.NET.
Back to Top | General Questions
In the United States, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) governs the collection of personal information, including usernames and email addresses, from children under 13. Because the Organization for Transformative Works is a non-profit and does not sell any data, COPPA does not apply to AO3; however, we adhere to the same restriction as a matter of policy.
-In some countries in Europe, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) governs the collection and processing of personal data, including email addresses and IP addresses, as well as certain uses of cookies. Other countries may have similar data privacy laws. The age at which someone can consent to the collection of personal data without written permission from their parent or legal guardian may be higher than 13, depending on their country of residence. We do not want to store the type of detailed personal information about users that would be required to verify and accept such permission. Therefore, children who wish to create an account or upload content to AO3 must meet their country's minimum age requirements to legally consent to personal data collection without written permission.
If the Policy & Abuse committee determines that a violation of the Age Policy has occurred, the account will be suspended and content on the account may be removed. If the content is not removed, the suspended user or their parent or guardian can contact the Policy & Abuse committee to request deletion of the content associated with the account.
If you were previously suspended because of your age and you are now old enough to have an account, you may contact the Policy & Abuse committee to regain access to your account.
-AO3 adheres to the GDPR's requirements for handling the content and information of children within the GDPR's jurisdiction. Accordingly, the parents or legal guardians of children within the European Union are not allowed to upload their child's content under their own (the parent or guardian's) account.
-This restriction does not apply to children in the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area (unless the child is also a resident or citizen of an EU country).
+AO3 adheres to the GDPR's requirements for handling the content and information of children within the GDPR's jurisdiction. Accordingly, the parents or legal guardians of children within the European Union are not allowed to upload their child's content to AO3.
+This restriction does not apply to children in the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area (unless the child is also a resident or citizen of a country in the European Union).
For general information about what is and isn't allowed on AO3, you can refer to our Terms of Service (including the Content Policy), as well as the Terms of Service FAQ (this page).
+If you are still unsure about whether something is allowed on AO3, you can contact the Policy & Abuse committee to ask for clarification. You will need to provide a detailed explanation of the content you are unsure about, as well as a quote, link, or copy of the content (if possible). Please be aware that we are not able to rule on hypothetical situations.
+Please contact the Policy & Abuse committee. You must provide your email address and a direct link to the specific content you want to report. In the subject and description of your report, please briefly describe the content you are reporting, explain why you are reporting it, and include any additional links or other details that could help us investigate the violation. If you don't provide this information in your report, we may not be able to investigate or act upon your complaint.
If you are reporting a specific comment or comment thread, you can get the direct link by selecting the "Thread" button on the comment and copying the URL of that page.
If you are reporting multiple works or comments posted by the same user, please compile all relevant links and other information into a single report, rather than reporting each link individually.
If you wish to report content posted by multiple unrelated users (such as two different works by different people in the same fandom), please submit separate reports for each user.
-In general, if you are not comfortable with reading and writing in English, you should use the language you are most fluent in. If you are fluent in English and you are reporting something written in another language, you can either select English or choose the language of the content you are reporting.
A DMCA takedown notice is a legal mechanism that a copyright owner can use to request removal of their copyrighted material from a hosting site. The takedown notice must meet certain legal requirements. For example, you must declare under penalty of perjury that you are the copyright owner or are legally authorized to act on their behalf. As such, DMCA notices are assessed by the Legal committee, and valid notices may be forwarded to the user who posted the work. We reserve the right to make public all DMCA notices that we receive, though some information may be redacted for privacy. DMCA notices are not subject to the procedures described in the Abuse Policy, nor are they governed by the Policy & Abuse confidentiality policy.
-Abuse reports, on the other hand, are held to a very high standard of confidentiality. They can be about any violation of the Terms of Service, including copyright infringement, harassment, commercial promotion, etc. Abuse reports are evaluated by the Policy & Abuse committee, who will never publish the details of a report or reveal any information about who submitted it.
+A DMCA takedown notice is a legal mechanism that a copyright owner can use to request removal of their copyrighted material from a hosting site. The takedown notice must meet certain legal requirements. For example, you must declare under penalty of perjury that you are the copyright owner or are legally authorized to act on their behalf. As such, DMCA notices are assessed by the Legal committee, and valid notices may be forwarded to the user who posted the work. We reserve the right to make public all DMCA notices that we receive, though some information may be redacted for privacy. DMCA notices are not subject to the procedures described in the Abuse Policy, nor are they governed by the Policy & Abuse confidentiality policy.
+Abuse reports, on the other hand, are held to a very high standard of confidentiality. They can be about any violation of the Terms of Service, including copyright infringement, harassment, commercial promotion, etc. Abuse reports are evaluated by the Policy & Abuse committee, who will never publish the details of a report or reveal any information about who submitted it.
Please do not submit an Abuse report if you intend to file a DMCA notice. Submitting both an Abuse report and a DMCA notice about the same content may delay the processing of your request.
Yes, but your report will be screened by our automated spam filters. If your report is rejected as spam, try using a different email address or removing extra links from your report description. Please also enter a valid email address so that we can contact you to request any additional evidence.
Reports from registered users are not subject to the spam filter, so long as you are logged in and the email address entered into the form is the one associated with your AO3 account (this will be prefilled for you).
-We will make a reasonable attempt to accommodate a complainant's reply preferences. However, we may choose not to reply to complaints at our discretion, particularly if it is a non-urgent matter or if the complainant submits frequent, duplicate, or baseless reports.
-Whether or not we reply to the complainant, our volunteers do evaluate all reports and act upon them as necessary. Complaints will generally be prioritized based on urgency, but because the Policy & Abuse committee is a small team of volunteers, we cannot guarantee any particular timeframe for the resolution of a complaint.
+The Policy & Abuse committee is a small team of international volunteers and our response times may vary. It may take some months for us to respond to a report.
+We will make a reasonable attempt to accommodate your preferences regarding replies. However, we may choose not to reply to reports at our discretion, particularly if the matter is not urgent or if you submit frequent, duplicate, or baseless reports.
+Please do not report content that you have already reported. Whether or not we reply to a report, our volunteers do evaluate all reports and act upon them as necessary. Reports will generally be prioritized based on urgency, but we cannot guarantee any particular timeframe for the resolution of a report.
No. We do not prescreen content on AO3, nor do we review content that has not been reported. If you believe you have encountered content that violates our Terms of Service, you will need to submit an Abuse report.
Please refrain from seeking out works that are in violation of the Terms of Service for the sole purpose of reporting or mass-reporting them. We investigate every report we receive, so submitting duplicate reports will only serve to delay the processing of the original complaint.
You can submit a report even if you aren't sure something is a violation. If the Policy & Abuse committee determines that what you reported is not in violation, you will receive an email letting you know and explaining why that type of content is allowed on AO3.
-If you repeatedly submit reports about similar non-violating material, your subsequent reports may not receive a reply.
+You can submit a report even if you aren't sure something is a violation. If the Policy & Abuse committee determines that what you reported is not in violation, we will send you an email letting you know and explaining why that type of content is allowed on AO3.
+If you repeatedly submit reports about similar non-violating material, we may not reply to your subsequent reports.
Abuse reports are reviewed by humans, not algorithms or bots. After a report is submitted, the Policy & Abuse committee reviews the reported content and independently evaluates whether or not it complies with our Terms of Service. If we determine that the content is in violation of the Terms of Service, only then do we take action to resolve the matter.
Multiple complaints about the same issue increases the time it takes for us to investigate, but we don't make decisions based on how many times something is reported. Mass reporting will not change whether or not the reported content is in violation of the Terms of Service, nor will it cause an issue to be addressed faster.
You don't need to worry that anyone's works will be taken down due to a baseless report or a mass-reporting campaign. We will only contact the subject of a complaint if they have in fact violated the Terms of Service. If we receive a report about something that isn't a violation, we will let the reporter know and close the report. If someone attempts to abuse our reporting system, such as by intentionally submitting baseless complaints, we may consider that harassment and take appropriate action.
-We appreciate good-faith attempts to resolve disputes, and in most such cases will close the complaint with no further action. However, we reserve the right to consider individual circumstances, including whether the poster has engaged in a pattern of such conduct. In such cases, if we verify that the original content violated the TOS, we may still decide to warn or suspend the original poster.
+A true threat is a threatening communication that someone genuinely intends to act upon. Threats that are intended to be acted upon can be prosecuted under United States law, and any true threats made on AO3 will be treated as unlawful content. We will act on content that appears to us to be a true threat, as we have no way to discern someone's genuine intent.
+However, threats do not have to be true threats to be a violation of our harassment policy. Threats made as jokes are also considered harassment.
+We appreciate good-faith attempts to resolve disputes, and in most such cases will close the complaint with no further action. However, we reserve the right to consider individual circumstances, including whether the poster has engaged in a pattern of such conduct. In such cases, if we verify that the original content violated the Terms of Service, we may still decide to warn or suspend the original poster.
You can mention in your report that the content was posted anonymously or orphaned. Content that violates the Terms of Service will be removed regardless of whether the original poster's name is publicly displayed. Penalties may be applied to the accounts of users responsible for posting violating content.
In general, no. Abuse reports are kept strictly confidential. We do our best not to reveal any information about the identity of a complainant (such as a username), though in some circumstances it may be impossible to keep the source of the report completely anonymous. We do not ever disclose information that would be sufficient to identify a person in the physical world, such as an email address or legal name. For more information, please refer to the Policy & Abuse Confidentiality Policy.
+No. All Abuse reports are kept strictly confidential. We do our best not to reveal any information about the identity of a complainant (such as a username), though in some circumstances it may be impossible to keep the source of the report completely anonymous. We do not ever disclose information that would be sufficient to identify a person in the physical world, such as an email address or legal name. For more information, please refer to the Policy & Abuse Confidentiality Policy.
Complaints can be submitted anonymously, but an email address is required. If you do not provide a valid email address and the complaint requires follow-up, we may be unable to take action.
-In general, the Policy & Abuse committee will only contact the subject of a complaint if there appears to be a violation of the Terms of Service, or if the team needs more information to resolve the issue.
-If someone files an invalid report against you, we will inform them that their complaint has not been upheld. You will not be told about the complaint and no action will be taken against your account or content.
+If someone submits an invalid report against you, we will inform them that their complaint has not been upheld. You will not be told about the complaint and no action will be taken against your account or content.
If we determine that you have in fact violated the Terms of Service, an email will be sent to the address associated with your account.
-Anonymity and privacy are essential to maintaining a fair reporting system. The Policy & Abuse committee will not disclose the identity of any complainant as part of an Abuse case.
-All users are responsible for following the Terms of Service, and all users have the right to file a complaint if they witness someone violating the Terms of Service.
-The Policy & Abuse committee will not uphold a complaint without investigating and confirming that a violation of the Terms of Service has occurred. This means that if the Policy & Abuse committee contacts you, their investigation has independently concluded that you have violated the Terms of Service.
+Anonymity and privacy are essential to maintaining a fair reporting system. The Policy & Abuse committee will not disclose the identity of any reporter as part of an Abuse case.
+All users are responsible for following the Terms of Service, and all users have the right to submit an Abuse report if they witness someone violating the Terms of Service.
+The Policy & Abuse committee will not uphold a report without investigating and confirming that a violation of the Terms of Service has occurred. This means that if we contact you, our investigation has independently concluded that you have violated the Terms of Service.
The Policy & Abuse committee will send an email to the address associated with your AO3 account. That email will explain what the violating content or behavior is, where it occurred, and (if applicable) what you need to do to resolve it. If you cannot locate the email notifying you of your violation (please check your spam folder), you can submit an Abuse report and we will resend the original email to you.
-What happens when a complaint is upheld depends greatly on the severity of the violation. For very minor issues, such as tag miscategorizations, we will simply ask you to fix the problem on your work. Violations of other portions of the Content Policy may result in content being temporarily hidden or permanently deleted, and/or a penalty being applied to your account.
+What happens when a complaint is upheld depends greatly on the severity of the violation. For very minor issues, such as tag miscategorizations, we will simply ask you to fix the problem on your work. Violations of other portions of the Content Policy may result in content being temporarily hidden or permanently deleted, and/or a penalty being applied to your account.
+You are responsible for all content posted by all accounts you own and for keeping your accounts secure. If you allow someone else to access your account, you are still responsible for that account's activity. We recommend using a unique, secure password for each and every one of your accounts on all platforms, and never sharing your login information with anyone for any reason. This includes third-party browser extensions, proxy sites, or apps other than legitimate password managers.
+Additionally, if you log in to AO3 or your email from a shared device, we recommend always logging out after each session. You should also make sure that you do not leave your personal devices unlocked where someone else could access them.
+If you are worried that your AO3 account may have been compromised, you should change your password immediately. This will automatically log you – and anyone else accessing your account – out of all sessions on all devices.
+If you've forgotten your password, you can log out and reset your password instead. If you no longer have access to the email address you associated with your account, please contact the Support committee.
+If you've received an email from do-not-reply@archiveofourown.org saying that your account's username, password, or email address has been changed to one you don't recognize, and you can't log in to your account, please contact the Policy & Abuse committee.
If your work is hidden, you'll receive an automatic email informing you that it's been hidden and providing you with a direct link to the work. You must be logged in to your account to access the hidden work.
-If your work is deleted, you'll receive an automatic email informing you that it's been deleted. A copy of the work will be attached to that email.
-In addition, the Policy & Abuse committee will also separately email you to explain why your work was hidden or deleted. If you've received an automatic "your work was hidden" or "your work was deleted" notification without also receiving an explanatory email from the Policy & Abuse committee, please check your spam folder. If you still can't find it, please contact the Policy & Abuse committee to let us know that you didn't receive our explanation.
+If your work is hidden, an automated email will be sent to the address associated with your account, informing you that your work has been hidden and providing you with a direct link to the work. You must be logged in to your account to access the hidden work.
+If your work is deleted, an automated email will be sent to the address associated with your account, informing you that your work has been deleted by an AO3 administrator. A copy of the work will be attached to that email.
+The Policy & Abuse committee will also send an email to the address associated with your account to explain why your work was hidden or deleted. If you've received an automatic "your work was hidden" or "your work was deleted" notification without also receiving an explanatory email from the Policy & Abuse committee, please check your spam folder. If you still can't find it, please contact the Policy & Abuse committee to let us know that you didn't receive our explanation.
If you are suspended, the email from the Policy & Abuse committee will inform you why you are suspended and how long your suspension will last. You will be further reminded automatically by the site if you attempt to post, edit, or delete content during the suspension period. If you were asked to edit or delete violating content on your account, you must wait until your suspension has ended in order to do so. You will not receive an email notification when your suspension is over.
If you were contacted about something you did that is in violation of the AO3 Terms of Service, you can appeal the decision or request clarification by replying directly to the original email. If you cannot locate the email notifying you of your violation (please check your spam folder), you can submit an Abuse report, but please do not submit multiple appeals before receiving a response to the first one. Submitting multiple appeals will delay the processing of your appeal, because it creates more paperwork for us to handle before we can respond to you.
-If you submitted a complaint and were told that the subject of your complaint is not in violation of the Terms of Service, then you can appeal the decision by replying directly to that email.
-At least one Policy & Abuse administrator who was not previously involved with the original investigation will evaluate all information provided in an appeal to determine whether or not the appeal should be granted. Additional reviewers may be involved at the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee. Please note that it may take some time to process your appeal and inform you of the result. The Policy & Abuse committee's decisions are final.
+If you submitted a report and were told that the subject of your report is not in violation of the Terms of Service, then you can appeal the decision or request clarification by replying directly to the email you received.
+If you received an email notification that the Policy & Abuse committee has determined you have violated the AO3 Terms of Service, you can appeal the decision or request clarification by replying directly to the email you received. When replying, please do not change the email's subject line, as this will create a new report and make it harder for us to notice your appeal or locate the details of your case.
+If you cannot locate the email notifying you of your violation (please check your spam folder), you can submit an Abuse report, but please do not submit a new report if you have already received or replied to our original email.
+Regardless of the nature of your appeal, the Policy & Abuse committee will only consider appeals that contain new information about a case. If you only tell us "I want to appeal", then you haven't provided enough information for us to overturn our original ruling.
+Please do not submit multiple appeals before receiving a response to your first one. Submitting multiple reports or emailing us repeatedly will delay the processing of your appeal and increase the time it takes for us to respond to you.
+At least one Policy & Abuse volunteer who was not previously involved with the original investigation will evaluate all the information you have provided in an appeal to determine whether or not the appeal should be granted. Additional reviewers may be involved at the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee. It may take some time to process your appeal and inform you of the result.
+The Policy & Abuse committee is the final authority on Terms of Service violations. If your appeal is rejected, you may not appeal the decision further, including to committees other than Policy & Abuse. Additional requests for appeal may not receive a reply.
+No. To protect user privacy, we will never share details about Policy & Abuse cases with a third party. This includes disclosing specific information about Terms of Service violations or discussing the status of an account with anyone other than the owner of that account.
+Please also note that the Policy & Abuse committee is the final authority on Terms of Service violations, and you may not appeal their decisions to other committees.
In general, we do not email users or respond to complaints until after we have investigated the reported content and determined whether or not a violation of the Terms of Service has occurred. In order to appeal successfully, you will need to provide evidence demonstrating that our original decision was incorrect or did not adhere to the Terms of Service. If you only tell us "I want to appeal", then you haven't provided enough information for us to overturn our original ruling.
If you are notified that your content was removed in order to resolve a lawsuit or mitigate other liability, an appeal is unlikely to succeed. These cases are extremely rare, and are thoroughly discussed and reviewed at multiple levels before any action is taken.
+The Policy & Abuse committee is the final authority on Terms of Service violations. If your appeal is rejected, you may not appeal the decision further, including to committees other than Policy & Abuse. Additional requests for appeal may not receive a reply.
No. If your appeal to the Policy & Abuse committee was rejected, you cannot appeal to any other committee. The Policy & Abuse committee is the final authority on TOS violations. To protect user privacy, other committees such as the Support committee and the OTW Board of Directors do not have information about Policy & Abuse cases. If you file an appeal with a different committee, they will simply forward the complaint to the Policy & Abuse committee or tell you to contact Policy & Abuse directly.
+No. The Policy & Abuse committee is the final authority on Terms of Service violations. To protect user privacy, other committees such as the Support committee and the OTW Board of Directors do not have access to any information about Policy & Abuse cases.
+If you appeal a Policy & Abuse case to another committee, they will simply forward your message or tell you to contact the Policy & Abuse committee directly.
After the deadline, a member of the Policy & Abuse committee will review your work. The following situations may occur:
As a general rule, we will not review content in advance of any stated deadlines. While we strive to review content promptly after the deadline, the Policy & Abuse committee is composed entirely of volunteers. We therefore cannot guarantee a timeframe in which your content will be reviewed.
Works that have been hidden or deleted due to violations of the Terms of Service may not be reposted as-is. If you don't understand why your work was removed, do not re-upload the work. Instead, contact the Policy & Abuse committee to request clarification.
If you know what the original problem with the work was, you may be able to edit the work and upload a non-violating version. However, if you have not sufficiently edited your work and the new work is still in violation, you may be reported again. Violating the Terms of Service in a manner similar to a previous violation is grounds for suspension.
-Content that is in violation of the Terms of Service may be reported and removed regardless of how long it has been since it was posted. The user responsible for uploading the violating content may be warned or suspended, subject to the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee.
-Content on AO3 that is in violation of the Terms of Service may be reported and removed regardless of how long it has been since it was posted. The user responsible for posting the violating content may be warned or suspended at the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee.
+As an AO3 user, it is your responsibility to ensure that your account and all of the works and other content you post are in compliance with the Terms of Service.
+Penalties are issued by the Policy & Abuse committee as a result of violating the Terms of Service. They are defined as follows:
Warning: A warning is a formal notification to a user who has posted content that violates the TOS. Warnings do not affect the function of the user's account, but they are a permanent administrative record and a reminder not to repeat the behavior. At the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee, a warning may be issued as a result of minor or unintentional violations of the TOS. A user who has previously received a warning and who violates the TOS again, especially in the same or a similar manner, is likely to incur a suspension.
+Warning: A warning is a formal notification to a user who has posted content that violates the Terms of Service. Warnings do not affect the function of the user's account, but they are a permanent administrative record and a reminder not to repeat the behavior. At the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee, a warning may be issued as a result of minor or unintentional violations of the Terms of Service. A user who has previously received a warning and who violates the Terms of Service again, especially in the same or a similar manner, is likely to incur a suspension.
Temporary Suspension: A temporary suspension is a time-limited restriction on the uploading of new content and creation of new accounts. During this time, the suspended user cannot upload new content, nor can they edit or delete content uploaded prior to the suspension. The duration of each suspension is subject to the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee. A user who has previously been suspended and who violates the TOS again, especially in the same or a similar manner, may incur a longer temporary suspension or a permanent ban.
+Temporary Suspension: A temporary suspension is a time-limited restriction on the uploading of new content and creation of new accounts. During this time, the suspended user cannot upload new content, nor can they edit or delete content uploaded prior to the suspension. The duration of each suspension is subject to the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee. A user who has previously been suspended and who violates the Terms of Service again, especially in the same or a similar manner, may incur a longer temporary suspension or a permanent ban.
Permanent Suspension: A permanent suspension is a permanent ban on the uploading of new content and creation of new accounts. Permanently suspended users retain the right to remove, but not edit, content uploaded prior to their suspension.
In general, non-violating content is not removed from the site when a user is suspended. If a user is temporarily suspended, then they will be able to edit or delete their content after their suspension is over. Otherwise, suspended users who wish to delete their fanworks may contact the Policy & Abuse committee to have this done for them.
-A user who has been temporarily suspended is not permitted to upload new content while they are suspended. Any new content uploaded to AO3 during the suspension would automatically be in violation. Such content may be removed and/or the alternate account(s) may be suspended. The duration of the original suspension may also be extended at the discretion of the Policy & Abuse committee.
-After the suspension has ended, the user will have full access to their account(s) again.
+In general, non-violating content is not removed from the site when a user is suspended. If a user is temporarily suspended, then they will be able to edit or delete their content after their suspension is over. Otherwise, suspended users who wish to delete their non-violating fanworks during their suspension may contact the Policy & Abuse committee to have this done for them.
+A user who has been temporarily suspended is not permitted to create or use other accounts, or to post or edit content on AO3, while they are suspended. Any new content created or accounts used during a suspension will automatically be considered in violation of the Terms of Service. The content may be removed and the alternate account(s) will be suspended. Violating the Terms of Service during a suspension may lead to an extension of the original suspension, or to a permanent suspension (ban).
Permanent suspension doesn't delete someone's account or content. In general, any content that doesn't violate the Content Policy or other parts of the Terms of Service will remain on the account unless the user deletes it themselves or requests that the content be deleted by the Policy & Abuse committee.
-A user who has been permanently suspended is not permitted to create a new account or upload new content to AO3. Any new content or accounts created by a permanently suspended user would automatically be in violation. The content may be removed and/or the alternate account(s) may be permanently suspended.
-It's impossible to define everything in advance. We are most concerned with people who are actively and deliberately hostile to the community. Small and honest mistakes are likely to result in warnings, especially on a first offense. More serious or deliberate violations of the Terms of Service may justify temporary suspension on a first or subsequent offense. Repeated and/or particularly severe TOS violations may result in permanent suspension.
+Permanent suspension doesn't delete someone's account or content. In general, any content that doesn't violate the Content Policy or other parts of the Terms of Service will remain on AO3 unless the user deletes it themself or requests that the content be deleted by the Policy & Abuse committee.
+However, if content posted by a permanently suspended user is found to violate the Terms of Service, it may be removed by the Policy & Abuse committee.
+A user who has been permanently suspended is not permitted to create or use other accounts, or to post or edit content on AO3. Any new content created or accounts used by a permanently suspended user will automatically be considered in violation of the Terms of Service. The content may be removed and the alternate account(s) will be permanently suspended.
+No. A permanent suspension is a permanent ban on the uploading of new content and creation of new accounts.
+Permanently suspended users cannot create new accounts or upload content to AO3. Penalties apply to users, not to individual accounts. Attempting to evade a ban is also a violation of the Terms of Service. Accounts that are found to belong to permanently banned users will also be banned and the content on the account may be removed.
+It's impossible to define everything in advance. We are most concerned with people who are actively and deliberately hostile to the community. Small and honest mistakes are likely to result in warnings, especially on a first offense. More serious or deliberate violations of the Terms of Service may justify temporary suspension on a first or subsequent offense. Repeated and/or particularly severe violations of the Terms of Service may result in permanent suspension.
We are committed to building a community that welcomes anyone with a willingness to learn the rules while also safeguarding against those who intentionally violate them. Our discretion is aimed at that objective. We strive to handle all Abuse reports consistently, no matter which volunteer is doing the work. Procedurally, appeals undergo review by multiple Policy & Abuse committee members, and we require consensus or majority vote for major decisions. Our internal decision-making processes are designed to build in checks on individual discretion without trying to resolve every possible situation in advance.
-We expect the members of the Policy & Abuse committee to behave professionally, even though the Organization for Transformative Works is an all-volunteer organization. We take the responsibilities of serving on the Policy & Abuse committee seriously, and a member of the team with a personal relationship to any party in a complaint is expected to recuse themselves entirely from the case, and, of course, to maintain our standards of confidentiality at all times. Failure to do so is grounds for dismissal from the Policy & Abuse committee.
-We are committed to building a community that welcomes anyone with a willingness to learn the rules while also safeguarding against those who intentionally violate them. Our discretion is aimed at that objective. We strive to handle all Abuse reports consistently, no matter which volunteer is doing the work. All appeals undergo review by multiple Policy & Abuse committee members, and we require consensus or majority vote for major decisions. Our internal decision-making processes are designed to build in checks on individual discretion without trying to resolve every possible situation in advance.
+We expect the members of the Policy & Abuse committee to behave professionally, even though the Organization for Transformative Works is an all-volunteer organization. We take the responsibilities of serving on the Policy & Abuse committee seriously, and a member of the team with a personal relationship to any party in an Abuse case is expected to recuse themself entirely from the case, and, of course, to maintain our standards of confidentiality at all times. Failure to do so is grounds for dismissal from the Policy & Abuse committee.
+Since new features may be added at any time, the Abuse Policy only applies to active features. As we develop features, we will strive to be transparent and communicate with users about our policies as much as possible.
Back to Top | Abuse Policy and Procedures FAQ
All content on AO3 must comply with our Content Policy.
+All content on AO3 must comply with our Content Policy. As an AO3 user, it is your responsibility to ensure that your account and all of the works and other content you post are in compliance with the Terms of Service.
We do not prescreen content on AO3, nor do we review content that has not been reported to us. If you believe you have encountered content that violates our Terms of Service, you will need to submit an Abuse report.
-The Policy & Abuse committee will investigate each report and independently determine whether a violation of the Terms of Service has occurred. Penalties may be applied to the accounts of users responsible for posting violating content. For more information, please refer to the Abuse Policy and Procedures FAQ.
+The Policy & Abuse committee will investigate each report and independently determine whether a violation of the Terms of Service has occurred. Penalties may be applied to the accounts of users responsible for posting violating content, even if the content was later removed. For more information, please refer to the Abuse Policy and Procedures FAQ.
Back to Top | General Questions about the Content Policy
All users who would like to avoid encountering particular types of content are recommended to make use of our filters and muting features.
AO3's Terms of Service are designed to comply with United States law. It is legal in the U.S. to create and share fictional content about murder, theft, assault, or other such crimes. It is also generally legal in the U.S. to create and share fictional content about topics such as child sexual abuse, rape, incest, or bestiality. AO3 allows users to post and access fiction about all of these topics.
-In accordance with U.S. law, AO3 prohibits Child Sexual Abuse Material (sexually explicit photorealistic images of real children). However, stories and non-photorealistic artwork are allowed, both under U.S. law and on AO3. Fiction about real people is still fiction, and therefore it is allowed on AO3.
+In accordance with U.S. law, AO3 prohibits Child Sexual Abuse Material (sexually explicit photorealistic images of real children). However, fictional stories and non-photorealistic artwork are allowed, both under U.S. law and on AO3. Fiction about real people is still fiction, and therefore it is allowed on AO3.
Depending on your country of residence or citizenship, the laws that apply to you may be more restrictive than those of the United States. All users are responsible for following the laws that apply to them. If certain content on AO3 is illegal for you to access, then you should ensure you carefully observe all relevant ratings and warnings, and avoid opening any work that indicates it may contain such content.
Sexually explicit photographs, videos, and other photorealistic images of children (also known as Child Sexual Abuse Material, or CSAM) are prohibited in the United States and on AO3. Users who embed, link to, solicit, distribute, or otherwise provide access to such material will be banned and reported to the appropriate authorities.
-Stories and non-photorealistic artwork (such as drawings or cartoons) that depict sexual activity involving characters under the age of eighteen are allowed, provided that the works are properly rated and carry the appropriate Archive Warning. However, photographic or photorealistic images of humans may not be used to illustrate works featuring underage sexual content. This includes (but is not limited to) photographs of children, porn gifs, photo manipulations, computer-generated or "AI" images, or other linked or embedded images that could potentially be mistaken for photographs of real humans.
+Fictional stories and non-photorealistic artwork (such as drawings or cartoons) that depict sexual activity involving characters under the age of eighteen are allowed, provided that the works are properly rated and carry the appropriate Archive Warning. However, photographic or photorealistic images of humans may not be used to illustrate works featuring underage sexual content. This includes (but is not limited to) photographs of children, porn gifs, photo manipulations, photorealistic computer-generated or "AI" images, and other linked or embedded images that could potentially be mistaken for photographs of real humans.
We understand that not all photorealistic images of humans are actually documenting the real-life abuse of a child or derived from illegal material, but we decided to use a guideline that can be uniformly applied without relying on subjective judgment. If the work appears to feature underage sexual content (as indicated by the "Underage Sex" Archive Warning or other contextual markers present in the work's tags, notes, or text), then the Policy & Abuse committee may require all photographic or photorealistic images of humans, regardless of age, to be removed from the work.
Yes, we will process TIDA removal requests for embedded or directly linked content. However, AO3 does not generally host images or video, so contacting the actual hosting source (which can usually be revealed by right-clicking on the content at issue) is likely to be more effective.
Before filing a TIDA removal request, please read our TIDA Policy carefully. If you have any questions, contact the Legal committee.
-TIDA removal requests should not be submitted to the Policy & Abuse committee. Abuse reports alleging that an image may be subject to removal under the Take It Down Act will be treated as third-party complaints and dismissed in accordance with U.S. law. If you are the individual depicted in the image, you must file a TIDA removal request with the Legal committee.
+TIDA removal requests should not be submitted to the Policy & Abuse committee. Abuse reports alleging that an image may be subject to removal under the Take It Down Act will be treated as third-party complaints and dismissed in accordance with United States law. If you are the individual depicted in the image, you must file a TIDA removal request with the Legal committee.
No. We welcome creators and fanworks of all skill levels, and we will never remove a work on account of its quality, grammar, spelling, or punctuation.
+No. We welcome creators and fanworks of all skill levels, and we will never remove a fanwork on account of its quality, length, grammar, spelling, or punctuation.
When browsing a tag, you can use the Filters sidebar to filter out works. If you are on a mobile device, select the "Filters" button at the top of the page to bring up this sidebar. Adding tags under the Exclude section will remove all works that use an excluded tag. For example, you can exclude any ratings and Archive Warnings that you don't want to encounter (make sure to also exclude the non-specific Rating and Archive Warning tags). You can also exclude other types of tags that users have chosen to add to their works.
-You can use the Search within results box to filter works using keywords. This searches the metadata (title, summary, tags, and beginning/end notes) of a work, but not the chapter notes or body text. You can also use the following symbols to refine your search:
+When browsing a tag, you can use the Filters sidebar to filter out works. If you are on a mobile device, select the "Filters" button at the top of the page to bring up this sidebar. Adding tags under the Exclude section will remove all works that use an excluded tag. For example, you can exclude any Ratings and Archive Warnings that you don't want to encounter (make sure to also exclude the non-specific Rating and Archive Warning tags). You can also exclude other types of tags that users have chosen to add to their works.
+You can use the Search within results box to filter works using keywords. This searches the metadata (title, summary, tags, and beginning/end notes) of a work, but not the chapter notes or body text. You can also use the following symbols to refine your search:
-) in front of a word (or a phrase in quotes) in the "Search within results" box will filter out all works that have the word anywhere in their metadata. *) before or after your search term will allow you to look for partial matches."like this") on either side of your search term will allow you to search for the exact phrase. Single and/or curly “smart” quotation marks will not work.For example, if you enter -sex* into the "Search within results" box, your results will exclude any works with metadata that contains words beginning with "sex" (including "sex", "sexual", "sexy", etc).
Once you have a search setup that works for you, you can bookmark the page in your browser in order to return to it later. If there's content you want to avoid on AO3, we recommend using filter keywords and browser bookmarks to exclude that content from what you encounter while browsing.
+For example, if you enter -sex* into the "Search within results" box, your results will exclude any works with metadata that contains words beginning with "sex" (including "sex", "sexual", "sexy", etc), while entering -*sex* will also exclude words like "unisex" and "heterosexual".
+Once you have a search setup that works for you, you can bookmark the page in your browser in order to return to it later. If there's content you want to avoid on AO3, we recommend using filter keywords and browser bookmarks to exclude that content from what you encounter while browsing.
If you need help using filters, please contact the Support committee.
If you want to avoid all content by a specific user, you should mute the user. To mute a user, go to their dashboard by following the link in their username. Then select the "Mute" button in the top-right corner, and confirm that you want to mute them on the next page. Muting a user means you will no longer be shown their works, series, bookmarks, or comments while browsing AO3. Please note that muting is a separate function from blocking.
-If you want to hide a specific work (for example, a specific anonymous or orphaned work), you can mute it with a site skin. To do so, create a site skin and add .work-000 { display: none !important; } to it, replacing 000 with the ID of the work you want to mute. The work ID number can be found in the work's URL immediately after /works/. For example, 000 would be the work ID of https://archiveofourown.org/works/000/chapters/123. Make sure to apply your site skin after you've created it. You can contact the Support committee if you have any problems using site skins.
To mute all content by orphan_account, go to your Preferences page and select the "Muted Users" button at the top of the page. Then enter orphan_account into the form, select the "Mute" button, and confirm that you want to mute them on the next page.
+If you want to hide a specific work (for example, a specific anonymous or orphaned work), you can mute it with a site skin. To do so, create a site skin and add .work-000 { display: none !important; } to it, replacing 000 with the ID of the work you want to mute. The work ID number can be found in the work's URL immediately after /works/. For example, 000 would be the work ID of https://archiveofourown.org/works/000/chapters/123. Make sure to apply your site skin after you've created it. You can contact the Support committee if you have any problems using site skins.
+To temporarily exclude all anonymous works from your search results, you can enter -creators: Anonymous in the "Search within results" filter option.
+You can also mute all anonymous works with a site skin. To do so, create a site skin and add .anonymous { display: none !important; } to it. Make sure to apply your site skin after you've created it. You can contact the Support committee if you have any problems using filters or site skins.
If you want a registered user to stop interacting with you, you can block the user. To block a user, select the "Block" button on any of the user's comments or on their user profile or dashboard, then confirm that you want to block them on the next page. Blocking a user means they cannot comment on or kudos your works, reply to your comments elsewhere, or give you gifts outside of a Challenge. Please note that blocking is a separate function from muting.
-If you want to prevent a guest user from commenting on your works, you can disable guest comments or only allow registered users to access your works. You may also want to enable comment moderation.
To prevent guest users from replying to your comments on other users' works, go to your Preferences page and enable "Do not allow guests to reply to my comments on news posts or other users' works (you can still control the comment settings for your works separately)". Remember to select the "Update" button at the bottom of the page to save any changes to your preferences.
Back to Top | Offensive Content vs Illegal Content FAQ
@@ -413,7 +464,8 @@AO3 allows a wide range of fanworks other than fanfiction, including but not limited to art, videos, crafts, games, fanmixes, authorized podfics, authorized translations, fannish nonfiction, original fiction, and more. You can post any non-commercial, non-ephemeral fanwork. Here are some examples of allowed fanwork content:
+AO3 allows a wide range of fanworks other than fanfiction, including but not limited to art, videos, crafts, games, fanmixes, authorized podfics, authorized translations, fannish nonfiction, original fiction, and more. You can create and post any non-commercial, non-ephemeral fanwork. Here are some examples of allowed fanwork content:
In general, you can post any non-commercial, non-ephemeral, transformative content you created that is fannish in nature. If you're uncertain if your work can be posted on AO3, you can always contact the Policy & Abuse committee to ask.
+In general, you can post any non-commercial, non-ephemeral, transformative content you created that is fannish in nature. If you want to post something that isn't similar to any of our examples of fanworks, and you are uncertain whether your work can be posted on AO3, you can always contact the Policy & Abuse committee to ask.
+If you would like to post a work to test features such as formatting or commenting, you may temporarily use the Testing fandom tag. When posting to the Testing fandom, please ensure that "Testing" is the only fandom tag listed on the work.
+Although non-fanworks may be temporarily posted to the Testing fandom, they must not violate any other part of the Terms of Service, and should not remain in the Testing fandom for more than 30 days. Once you have finished testing, you should either delete your testing non-fanwork or edit it to ensure the work contains fanwork content and is tagged with appropriate fandom tags.
Ephemeral content is material that exists primarily to share someone's impressions, reactions, or feelings about a current event, fandom, or trend. If the content contains limited analytical or interpretive content, or lacks any artistic material, it is likely to be classified as ephemeral. Some examples of ephemeral content include live reactions, announcements about upcoming fanworks, and requests for prompts.
+Ephemeral content is material that exists primarily to share someone's impressions, reactions, or feelings about a current event, fandom, or trend. If the content contains limited analytical or interpretive content, or lacks any artistic material, it is likely to be classified as ephemeral. Some examples of ephemeral content include live reactions, announcements about upcoming fanworks, and requests for prompts. You can include this information in the notes of your existing fanworks or on your profile page, but it should not be posted as a separate work.
While it may benefit general fannish history to keep a record of such moments, AO3 is not intended to host all content that is fannish in nature. This type of content is often better suited for social media, personal sites, or blogging services. The Organization for Transformative Works also runs Fanlore, a wiki about fanworks and fan communities, including fandom trends and current events.
Please use your best judgment. Our general policy is to defer to creators in cases of doubt; however, the Policy & Abuse committee has final discretion in determining ephemerality.
Yes. Original works are allowed, unless the work would be in violation of some other part of the Terms of Service.
Our vision of AO3 is for all fanworks, including those beyond traditional fanfiction, fanart, and fanvids. Original stories and artwork, including those imported as part of an Open Doors project, are permitted. Some examples of original fiction that we host include original slash, anthropomorphic works, and Regency romance. However, works intended for commercial publication are not suitable for AO3. The Policy & Abuse committee has final discretion in maintaining AO3's focus on non-commercial fannish works.
-We generally presume that, by posting the work to AO3, the creator is making a statement that they believe it's a fanwork. As such, original work will be allowed to remain unless the work is in violation of some other part of the Terms of Service, such as our plagiarism or non-commercialization policies.
+We generally presume that, by posting the work on AO3, the creator is making a statement that they believe it's a fanwork. As such, original work will be allowed to remain unless the work is in violation of some other part of the Terms of Service, such as our plagiarism or non-commercialization policies.
Fannish nonfiction, which includes what is called "meta" by some fans, is allowed. However, it must still be fannish in some way and contain some kind of analytical or creative content. In addition, as an Archive whose goal is preservation, we want permanent, non-ephemeral content. If the content is meant to be ephemeral, such as a liveblog of episode reactions, it should be posted on a social media account rather than on AO3.
Examples of fannish nonfiction and things that are not fanworks are available below.
@@ -477,7 +533,7 @@This isn't an exhaustive list – fannish nonfiction may take many other forms.
-We will generally defer to the creator's characterization of a work as fannish nonfiction as long as it has a reasonably perceptible fannish connection, either to a specific source or to fandom in general, and takes the form of an independent, non-ephemeral commentary. However, not all nonfiction falls within our mandate. Please consider what isn't fannish nonfiction before posting your work. While we acknowledge the complexity of certain cases that may fall on the boundaries of categories, setting limits is necessary to maintain AO3's manageability for our dedicated volunteers and users.
+We will generally defer to the creator's characterization of a work as fannish nonfiction as long as it has a reasonably perceptible fannish connection, either to a specific source or to fandom in general, and takes the form of an independent, non-ephemeral commentary. However, not all nonfiction falls within our mandate. Please consider what isn't fannish nonfiction before posting your work. While we acknowledge the complexity of certain cases that may fall on the boundaries of categories, setting limits is necessary to keep AO3 manageable for our dedicated volunteers and users.
The examples are potentially limitless, but here are some examples that do not fall under AO3's definition of fannish fiction or nonfiction and should not be posted as a work:
Works that incorporate fannish content in clearly bad faith are not fanworks. For example, a work primarily composed of fic search requests is not a fanwork even if there are a few sentences of fandom-specific content.
-In general, we presume good faith on the part of our users, and ask that you do the same for the fans who make up our Support and Policy & Abuse committees. The Policy & Abuse committee will exercise its discretion, which is final, in the service of maintaining AO3 as a place focused on non-ephemeral fanworks.
+In general, we presume good faith on the part of our users, and ask that you do the same for the fans who make up our Support and Policy & Abuse committees. The Policy & Abuse committee will exercise its discretion, which is final, in the service of maintaining AO3 as a place focused on non-ephemeral fanworks.
The presumption is that a work is a fanwork, but if it's clear from context (summary, tags, notes, etc.) that it's not, it may be removed for violating the Content Policy. The Policy & Abuse committee will consider many factors when determining if something is a fanwork, such as whether the reported content is transformative, ephemeral, or fannish in nature.
+The presumption is that a work is a fanwork, but if it's clear from context (summary, tags, notes, etc.) that it's not, it may be removed for violating the Content Policy. The Policy & Abuse committee will consider many factors when determining if something is a fanwork, such as whether the reported content is transformative, ephemeral, or fannish in nature.
Additionally, original works that are not based on a specific media source (canon) are considered fanworks. Please see Can I post original fiction? for more detail.
Placeholders are not allowed on AO3. This includes works in progress that do not have any story content, works where only the summary and tags have been posted, and lists of ship names, character profiles, or ideas for what you plan to publish. You can create a draft to edit your tags or preview your work before posting it publicly, but please don't post the work unless you have at least one chapter of your fanwork that is ready to be shared with other people.
+If you want to let people know about a fanwork you haven't written yet or plan to post on AO3, we suggest including such information on your profile page or in the notes or comment sections of your existing fanworks.
A work that is simply a collection of actors' photos paired with character names would not be considered a fanwork, nor would a work that only consists of statistics or summaries of canon elements (such as what you might find on a fannish wiki). However, if you include more in-depth analytical, descriptive, or narrative content, then we would likely consider that fannish analysis (meta), which is allowed. An example would be an extended analysis of the character traits that led you to choose that particular fancasting.
-If you would like to post fancastings, statistics, or a summary about your own fanwork, you can include it in the fanwork's notes or post it as an extra chapter inside the fanwork.
+If you would like to post fancastings, statistics, or a summary about your own fanwork, you can include it in the fanwork's notes or post it as an extra chapter inside the fanwork. If you want to include information about multiple works at once, you can create a series or collection, and use the description fields.
No. The incorrect quotes meme format involves a collection of quotes where the names have been substituted with the names from a different source. While the amount of quoted text is relatively small, replacing names and minor rewording of quotations is not sufficiently transformative to make the resulting content a fanwork.
+No. A work that consists only of quotations collected from other sources is not allowed. Even if the amount of quoted text is relatively small, replacing names and minor rewording of quotations is not sufficiently transformative to make the resulting content a fanwork. However, posting quotes or dialogue that are your own original writing in the format of an "incorrect quotes" meme may be considered a fanwork.
We currently don't host multimedia content other than user icons, though you can embed various kinds of files that are hosted elsewhere if it's a fannish transformative work (or part of one) and otherwise complies with the Content Policy. However, for technical and legal reasons we don't allow all kinds of embeds. Please read our policies about embedding images that you did not create, podfics of stories that you did not write, images that depict explicit content, and images in works featuring underage sexual content. In addition, keep in mind that embeds may break for various reasons, including trouble with the hosting site.
+We currently don't host multimedia content other than user icons, though you can embed various kinds of files that are hosted elsewhere if it's a fannish transformative work (or part of one) and otherwise complies with the Content Policy. However, for technical and legal reasons we don't allow all kinds of embeds. Please read our policies about embedding images that you did not create, podfics of stories that you did not write, images that depict explicit content, and images in works featuring underage sexual content. In addition, keep in mind that embeds may break for various reasons, including trouble with the hosting site.
We consider those versions of your fanworks, so you may post them as you would any other fanwork. We suggest that you distinguish them from non-commentary versions, for example by adding "[Directors' Cut]" in the title or tagging them to indicate the difference between the original and the "DVD-style" version.
No, you cannot post announcements or other blog-style updates as separate works. Status updates and other author notes are considered ephemeral content. If you want to discuss a fanwork you've posted or plan to post on AO3, we suggest including such information on your profile page or in the notes or comment sections of your existing fanworks.
+No, you cannot post announcements or other blog-style updates as separate works. Status updates and other author notes are considered ephemeral content. If you want to discuss a fanwork you've posted or plan to post on AO3, we suggest including such information on your profile page or in the notes or comment sections of your existing fanworks.
In general, adding several announcement chapters to an existing fanwork will not cause your entire work to become a non-fanwork. However, if you want to talk extensively about your works or personal life, then we recommend linking to a social media site in the notes of your fanworks instead of posting announcement chapters.
No. Requests or calls for roleplay partners are not fanworks. We encourage you to seek and advertise for roleplaying partners or servers on your preferred social media platform(s) instead.
+No. Requests or calls for roleplay partners are not fanworks. We encourage you to seek and advertise for roleplaying partners or servers on your preferred social media platform(s) instead. You can also include this information on your profile page or in the notes or comment sections of your existing fanworks.
No. Please use our search functions for this rather than creating a separate work. You can use our Work Search or Bookmark Search, or select a particular tag and then use the Filters sidebar to further refine the results.
-Should you find that this is not sufficient to locate the work you are seeking, your preferred internet search engine (such as Google or DuckDuckGo) may be able to search for distinctive phrases within the work text itself. You can perform an AO3-specific sitewide search by adding the search term site:archiveofourown.org, which will limit your results to pages on AO3.
No. Please use our search functions for this rather than creating a separate work. You can search for works with our Work Search or Bookmark Search, or use our Tag Search to choose a tag and then use the Filters sidebar to further refine the results.
+Should you find that this is not sufficient to locate the work you are seeking, your preferred internet search engine (such as Google or DuckDuckGo) may be able to search for distinctive phrases within the work text itself. You can perform an AO3-specific sitewide search by adding the search term site:archiveofourown.org, which will limit your results to pages on AO3.
If you require assistance from other users, we advise seeking out fandom-specific or pairing-specific fic-finding communities on social media platforms such as Tumblr, Reddit, or Discord, whose members will be more than happy to help you locate the works you are looking for.
No. Please create a prompt meme to offer suggestions or challenges to other people, rather than posting a work.
-A short, distinct piece (such as a drabble or vignette) would be considered a fanwork. If you have written a full scene or outlined the plot in enough detail that it could count as a fanwork in and of itself, that would also be allowed.
However, if you only have a handful of sentences or bullet points and there isn't much plot or characterization, that may be considered a non-fanwork placeholder or prompt. If your primary reason for posting the work is to offer ideas or suggestions for other people, please create a prompt meme instead of posting a work.
No, you cannot post a work that is only a request for other people to give you prompts. Please create a prompt meme instead. You can share the link to your prompt signup form on social media or in the notes of your fanworks.
+No, you cannot post a work that is only a request for other people to give you prompts. Please create a prompt meme instead. You can share the link to your prompt signup form on social media, in the notes of your fanworks, or on your profile page.
No. Since this content is designed to be ephemeral (it is directed at a particular person for a particular event), please do not create a separate work for it. If the challenge is hosted on AO3, please put your letter in the optional details for the challenge. If you want to share your general preferences such as your favorite fandoms or tropes, you can put that information in your profile.
+No. Since this content is designed to be ephemeral (it is directed at a particular person for a particular event), please do not create a separate work for it. If the challenge is hosted on AO3, please put your letter in the optional details for the challenge. If you want to share your general preferences such as your favorite fandoms or tropes, you can put that information on your profile page.
+Creators are welcome to post links to social media accounts, such as Discord, Bluesky, or Tumblr, in the notes or comments of their fanworks or on their profile page.
+However, social media links should not be posted as standalone works. Additionally, they must not violate any other part of our Terms of Service, such as our policies on commercial promotion and spam.
Posting a "rec list" (one or more recommendations as a work) may be a violation of our non-fanwork policy. Please use our bookmark feature for this purpose instead. Bookmarks can include commentary, be marked as recommendations, and organized with tags or into collections.
-Criticism of a fanwork is permitted in the tags or notes of a bookmark and will not be considered harassment. However, no matter its location on the site, all commentary must comply with our other policies, including our harassment policy.
+Criticism of a fanwork is permitted in the tags or notes of a bookmark and will not be considered harassment. However, no matter its location on the site, all commentary must comply with our other policies, including our harassment policy.
The difference between a recommendation versus a general meta-discussion or analysis of a fanwork is determined through several factors, such as whether the content is ephemeral in nature or if it contains analytical or interpretive content. A work is more likely to be a non-fanwork if it's just a list of titles and summaries (such as a "Top 10 List" or "Recs for Fluff Fics") or if it's similar to a product review (for example, "This is the best slow burn fic in the fandom and here's why you should read it"). If the work contains extended commentary or analysis about the nature of the recommended work, it is more likely to be considered a fanwork and allowed on AO3.
Please use your judgment on the best way to categorize such commentary.
In general, if a financial transaction is involved, you cannot discuss it on AO3. Commercial activity is prohibited regardless of the reason why the commercial activity is occurring.
-A commercial platform is a site whose primary purpose is to facilitate the exchange of money. This includes online storefronts as well as tipping, patronage, subscription, and crowdfunding services. Linking, discussing, or referencing someone's presence (including your own) on a commercial platform is prohibited.
Examples of commercial platforms include, but are by no means limited to:
As stated, this list is non-exhaustive. If the primary function of the platform involves allowing someone to give someone else money, then you should not advertise your presence on it in any way.
Sometimes sites mainly dedicated to some other purpose (such as social media or image/audio/video hosting) will also have features or subsections of their platform dedicated to monetization. For example, DeviantArt is primarily a free-to-use art gallery and social media website, but it does have some specific sections of its platform that are commercial in nature, such as DeviantArt's Shop, Commissions, Premium Galleries, and Core Memberships. In such cases, you are allowed to link to content on the "free" portion of the website, so long as the page you are linking to is non-commercial in nature. However, linking to or mentioning the monetized content is not allowed.
-Sometimes sites mainly dedicated to some other purpose (such as social media or image/audio/video hosting) will also have features or subsections of their platform dedicated to monetization. For example, DeviantArt is primarily a free-to-use art gallery and social media website, but some specific sections of its platform are commercial in nature, such as DeviantArt's Shop, Commissions, Premium Galleries, and Core Memberships. In such cases, you are allowed to link to content on the "free" portion of the website, so long as the page you are linking to is non-commercial in nature. However, linking to or referencing any monetized content is not allowed.
+In general, linking to your social media accounts or personal website is fine, even if you sometimes post about commercial activities on that site. However, you may not link to accounts, posts, sites, or pages that reference commercial activity in the URL, or that are primarily commercial in nature (such as a Carrd that lists your published novels and explains where to buy them). In addition, you may not provide instructions anywhere on AO3 for finding your commercial content elsewhere (for example, stating that information about your paid commissions is available on a specific webpage even if you don't link directly to that page).
Stating in general terms that you have written a book or providing your pen name is fine, even if you use that pen name for commercial works. However, you may not use AO3 to promote your commercial works, tell people where they can find or buy those works, or otherwise advertise your commercial works in a manner that could encourage others to seek out and purchase the works.
No. Our non-commercialization policy applies everywhere on AO3, including user profiles, comments, fanworks, and works in the "Original Work" fandom. Asking for donations or tips is considered engaging in commercial activities and is not allowed anywhere on the site.
Posting a preview or advertisement for a commercial work is not allowed. This includes uploading only a "snippet" to promote a larger paid work, as well as removing significant portions of a fanwork that has been "pulled to publish" professionally. Even if it contains some fannish content, sharing excerpts intended to promote or sell paid content is prohibited.
+Previews or advertisements for commercial works are not allowed. Partial works clearly intended to promote or sell paid content are prohibited, even if they contain some fannish content.
+This includes uploading only a "snippet" to promote a larger paid work, as well as removing significant portions of a fanwork because some version of it has been, or will be, published professionally.
No. If you provide an "early access" service in exchange for money, you cannot reference it on AO3. This includes stating that additional "bonus content" is available elsewhere, regardless of whether you plan to make the content available to the public in the future. Advertising paywalled content is not allowed even if you don't provide instructions, include links, or name a specific commercial platform.
You may not indicate anywhere on AO3 that other people are financially supporting you due to your fanworks. This includes stating that they paid for a commission, donated money to you or others, or are a patron or paid subscriber. However, you are allowed to name someone in a non-commercial manner, such as by crediting them for a prompt or by using the Gift feature to dedicate your work to them.
No. Our non-commercialization policy applies to the entirety of AO3, including the comments section of other users' works. Encouraging other users to engage in commercial activity is prohibited.
+No. Our non-commercialization policy applies to the entirety of AO3, including the comments section of other users' works. Encouraging other users to engage in commercial activities is prohibited.
You may not encourage commercial activity on behalf of someone else, which includes encouraging people to purchase a commission. If you are embedding commissioned images, audio, or videos, you must ensure that there are no ads, links, or watermarks for any commercial platforms. In addition, you may only upload someone else's work if you have their explicit permission to do so.
Offering paid commissions is not allowed. This includes posting links to pricelists or payment request forms. However, you are allowed to post fanworks that were created upon request and credit the person who made the request. If you do so, you must not indicate that you received payment for the commission or that you are available to create other paid commissions. Because not all commissioned fanworks were created for pay, we do permit usage of the word "commission" as long as there is no indication that a monetary transaction was involved in the creation of the work.
+Offering paid commissions on AO3 is not allowed. This includes posting links to pricelists or payment request forms. However, you are allowed to post fanworks that were created upon request and credit the person who made the request, for example by gifting the work to them. If you do so, you must not indicate that you received payment for the commission or that you are available to create other paid commissions. Because not all commissioned fanworks were created for pay, we do permit usage of the word "commission" as long as there is no indication that a monetary transaction was involved in the creation of the work.
Yes. AO3 will host fanworks of any origin, including fanworks created in response to charity events or other challenges. A link to a charity to explain the origin of a fanwork is appropriate, but please do not link directly to any fundraising sites or pages. You may state that a work was produced for a particular charity event, project, or other entity, as long as you do not mention donating, bidding, or any specific contribution amounts or donation platforms.
-You are allowed to link to a charity's website, encourage people to learn more about the charity, or explain why you believe in its mission. However, you may not link directly to the charity's donation form, promote their fundraisers, or request that people donate to them.
Yes. However, you may not encourage users to buy the zine or its merchandise, such as by linking to an advertisement or to a sales or orders page.
-Links to product purchase pages are not allowed, even if payment is optional. If the content is hosted on a non-commercial site that doesn't offer payment options, you can link to that site instead.
No. Since this involves an exchange of money, it is considered a commercial activity regardless of whether you personally make a profit.
@@ -643,7 +704,7 @@No. Both direct and indirect references to commercial platforms or activities are not allowed.
No. You are allowed to create fanworks in which the characters engage in or reference commercial activities as part of the fictional story. For example, you could create a fanwork in which one character is an OnlyFans creator and another subscribes to them or buys their merchandise. However, you cannot link to or otherwise promote any real-world subscription, merchandise, or other commercial activity.
-Please keep in mind that all Abuse reports are reviewed by the human volunteers on our Policy & Abuse committee. In general, we presume good faith on the part of our users. However, if we conclude that someone is deliberately trying to circumvent our rules by having fictional characters discuss commercial activities, then the fanwork may be deemed commercial in nature and unacceptable to post on AO3.
+Please keep in mind that all Abuse reports are reviewed by the human volunteers on our Policy & Abuse committee. In general, we presume good faith on the part of our users. However, if we conclude that someone is deliberately trying to circumvent our rules by having fictional characters discuss commercial activities, then the fanwork may be deemed commercial in nature and unacceptable to post on AO3.
Back to Top | Commercial Promotion FAQ
Copyright protects an individual's expression of an idea, not the idea itself. "Expression" refers to the work created, such as the wording of a paragraph in a book, while an "idea" covers general plots or tropes. For example, posting a transcript of a movie without permission constitutes copyright infringement, as it replicates a significant part of the original work (the spoken dialogue) exactly. In comparison, a transformative fanwork reframes existing material in a unique manner, such as retelling a superhero movie from the perspective of civilians.
The Supreme Court of the United States has explained transformative use as "add[ing] something new, with a further purpose or different character, altering the first [work] with new expression, meaning, or message." Essentially, by significantly reinterpreting the original material, the creator of a transformative work makes a new, distinct creation that does not require the copyright owner's permission to create or share.
-Yes. AO3 maintains that fanworks are transformative and that a fanwork's creator owns the rights to the expressions in their work that are unique to them. A fanwork creator holds the rights to their own content, just the same as any professional author, artist, or other creator.
+Paying someone to create a work does not automatically give you any rights over that work. The original creator of a work, fanwork or otherwise, holds the copyright to the content they created. You may only post someone else's work on AO3 if they have granted you permission to do so or if they have formally relinquished or transferred the relevant rights in an explicit licensing agreement.
You may only post someone else's fanworks if they granted you permission to do so. If you do not have the creator's permission, you cannot post their work. Including a disclaimer that the work is not yours or crediting the original creator is not sufficient. Posting and then anonymizing or orphaning the work is also not allowed. Please use our bookmark feature to share other people's fanworks instead of reposting their works.
+You may only post someone else's fanworks if they granted you permission to do so. If you do not have the creator's permission, you cannot upload their work to AO3. Including a disclaimer that the work is not yours or crediting the original creator is not sufficient. Posting and then anonymizing or orphaning the work is also not allowed. Please use our bookmark feature to share other people's fanworks instead of reposting their works.
If you do have the creator's permission, you can upload their fanwork as long as you provide appropriate credit. For example, you could add the creator's name and include links to the work on the original site and to the place where they gave you permission.
If you created or moderate a fanwork archive or mailing list, you may be eligible to become an authorized Open Doors archivist and import your archive to AO3. The Open Doors committee will work with approved moderators to contact and fully credit the original creators of the fanworks, giving the creators as much control over their fanworks as possible.
Translations and podfics can be posted only if you have permission from the copyright owner (usually the creator or publisher) of the original work. If you do not have permission, then you may not post your work.
Under United States copyright law, translations and audiobooks are considered "derivative" works – not transformative works. Derivative works cannot be posted without the copyright holder's consent. AO3 adheres to U.S. law, so if you want to post a translation or podfic of a fanwork, you need the fanwork creator's permission.
-If the original work is no longer under copyright because it is old enough that it has entered the public domain, refer to How do these rules apply to works that are in the public domain?
+If the original work is no longer under copyright because it is old enough that it has entered the public domain, refer to How do AO3's copyright and plagiarism policies apply to works that are in the public domain?
While you are welcome to create a fanwork that is based on or inspired by another work, you may not take someone else's work and only make minor changes to it (such as swapping out the names, changing the formatting, or rewording the original text). Unless the fanwork creator or copyright owner granted you permission to modify, convert, or adapt their work in this manner, posting this kind of work is a violation of our Terms of Service, even if you provide credit.
-You may not take someone else's work and only make minor changes to it (such as swapping out the names, changing the formatting, or rewording the original text) unless the fanwork creator or copyright owner granted you permission to modify, convert, or adapt their work in this manner. Posting this kind of work without permission is a violation of our Terms of Service, even if you provide credit. However, you are welcome to create a fanwork that is based on or inspired by another work.
+Yes. Fanworks based on other fanworks are also transformative, and are allowed. You can use the "Inspired By" feature to link to the original creator's work. Unlike with reposts, conversions, podfics, and translations, you don't need permission to create a recursive fanwork. However, you cannot include large excerpts from the original work unless the original creator gave you permission to do so.
-Even if someone deletes or orphans their work, or posts it anonymously, they still hold the copyright to their own work. If the original creator has chosen to remove their fanwork from the internet, or cannot be contacted, then please respect their decision. You cannot post, convert, podfic, or translate someone else's work without their explicit permission, even if you credit them or disclaim credit for yourself.
Some fanwork creators may list "blanket permission" statements in their profile or in the tags or notes of their work. An example of a blanket permission statement would be "Anyone can translate my works so long as they provide me credit and link back to the original here on AO3." In such cases, you have permission if and only if you meet the conditions of the permission statement.
If a creator doesn't have a blanket permission statement, then you can try to contact them directly and ask. This could be by commenting on their work or asking them via social media or email (if they have shared that information publicly). If the creator responds and gives you permission, then you're good to go. If they refuse or do not respond, then you do not have their permission and you may not post the work.
+Even if someone deletes or orphans their work, or posts it anonymously, they still hold the copyright to their own work. If the original creator has chosen to remove their fanwork from the internet, or cannot be contacted, then please respect their decision. You cannot post, convert, podfic, or translate someone else's work without their explicit permission, even if you credit them or disclaim credit for yourself.
Scripts of movies, TV shows, and plays are subject to copyright, just like published books, songs, poems, photographs, artwork, and other works. Transcribing and posting the content of a copyrighted work is not allowed. However, you may include a limited number of short quotes in your fanwork.
Fanvids where the audio is an entire song are allowed, so long as you have added or remixed a substantial number of visuals to accompany the song such that the video becomes a transformative work. For example, simply posting the text of the song's lyrics to accompany the song would not be considered transformative. A video consisting of an entire song accompanied by two or three long, unedited clips from a movie would also not be considered a transformative work.
A "fanmix" is a thematic compilation of songs curated by a fan to reflect a character, chapter, setting, theme, or other element of a work. If you wish to post character playlists or fanmixes, you may use licensed streaming sites such as Spotify or YouTube. You may not provide links that could deliver individual music file downloads (such as a single zipped file containing music files) unless you have the right to distribute downloads (for example, a fan song or filk you composed and sang, a work in the public domain, or a Creative Commons-licensed download). Please also keep in mind that you may quote lyrics as part of a transformative work, but you may not reproduce the entire song text unless you have the right to do so. In addition, if you just post a list of song titles without including any way to listen to the songs, then your work may not be considered a transformative fanwork.
+A "fanmix" is a thematic compilation of songs curated by a fan to reflect a character, chapter, setting, theme, or other element of a work. If you wish to post character playlists or fanmixes, you may use licensed streaming sites such as Spotify or YouTube. You may not provide links that could deliver individual music file downloads (such as a single zipped file containing music files) unless you have the right to distribute downloads (for example, a fan song or filk you composed and sang, a work in the public domain, or a Creative Commons-licensed download). Please also keep in mind that you may quote lyrics as part of a transformative work, but you may not reproduce the entire song text unless you have the right to do so. In addition, if you just post a list of song titles without including any way to listen to the songs, then your work may not be considered a transformative fanwork.
If you have the artist's or writer's permission, then you may embed or upload their work alongside your own as long as you credit them appropriately. If you do not have the creator's permission, you cannot repost their work, even if you credit them. We recommend that you instead provide a link to wherever the original creator has chosen to host it.
-If a work is in the public domain, then it is no longer copyrighted. In this case, you can use as many excerpts from it in your fanwork as you like.
-However, a public domain work is not in and of itself a fanwork. You cannot simply upload a public domain work to AO3 or make minor alterations such as replacing names or synonyms. You need to add your own content in order for your work to be considered a fanwork.
-If you create your own fan translation or podfic of a public domain work, you can post your work on AO3. However, you can't repost someone else's translation or podfic without their explicit permission. Translations and audio recordings have their own copyright separate from the source work's. The translator or podficcer has ownership over their own specific translation or recording, even if the underlying work is in the public domain.
-Yes – please make sure you provide a link to the original work as well as a link to the infringing work in your report description. If you don't tell us what the original source is and which work is infringing upon it, then we may not be able to uphold your complaint.
+If you have the artist's or writer's permission, then you may embed or upload their work alongside your own as long as you credit them appropriately. For example, you could add the creator's name and include links to the work on the original site and to the place where they gave you permission.
+If you do not have the creator's permission, you cannot repost their work, even if you credit them. We recommend that you instead provide a link to wherever the original creator has chosen to host it.
+If a work is in the public domain, then it is no longer protected by intellectual property laws. An example is a work for which the copyright term has expired. However, not all works that are publicly available are in the public domain; content that has been posted online or is free to access may still be protected by copyright.
+If a work is in the public domain, you can use as many excerpts from it in your fanwork as you like, but a public domain work is not in and of itself a fanwork. You cannot simply upload a public domain work to AO3 or make minor alterations such as replacing names or synonyms. You need to add your own content in order for your work to be considered a fanwork.
+Translations and audio recordings also have their own copyright separate from that of the source work. If someone has created a translation or podfic of a public domain work, that person owns the copyright in their own specific translation or recording. You can create your own fan translation or podfic of a public domain work (or a copyrighted work that you have permission to translate or podfic), and post your work on AO3. However, you can't repost someone else's translation or podfic without their explicit permission.
+Yes; please make sure you provide a link to the original work as well as a link to the infringing work in your report description. If you don't tell us what the original source is and which work is infringing upon it, then we may not be able to uphold your complaint.
If you want to report multiple instances of plagiarism or copyright infringement by a single user, please submit only one report rather than reporting each link individually. We'll be able to process your complaint faster if you take the time to compile all relevant links, excerpts, and other information into a single report and correctly pair each infringing work with the original source.
If you are reporting multiple works by different users, please submit a separate report for each user.
Yes. However, such reports must include a link to the alleged source work. If we cannot compare the two works, we will not be able to uphold a complaint of plagiarism or copyright infringement.
Yes, we will process DMCA takedown notices submitted by the copyright owner or their legal representative. Before filing a DMCA takedown notice, please read our DMCA Policy carefully. If you have any questions, contact the Legal committee.
-DMCA takedowns and counternotices should not be submitted to the Policy & Abuse committee. Please do not submit both an Abuse report and a DMCA notice about the same content, as this may delay the processing of your request.
+DMCA takedowns and counternotices should not be submitted to the Policy & Abuse committee. Please do not submit both an Abuse report and a DMCA notice about the same content, as this may delay the processing of your request.
The Organization for Transformative Works does not hold the copyright to your fanworks, so we cannot contact other sites or organizations on your behalf. Because you are the copyright owner, you will have to contact the other site yourself to request that they remove the unauthorized copy of your work.
Back to Top | Copyright Infringement and Plagiarism FAQ
@@ -734,6 +799,8 @@Public information includes personal information that an individual has revealed about themself in publicly-accessible locations, such as public websites or social media accounts that do not require an account to access. It may also include well-known information about public figures.
+Non-public information includes personal information that is not available to the general public. This includes any personal information that is not available online, as well as information that has only been shared in closed communities, such as private social media accounts or restricted-access chat groups or servers.
+No. If an individual has chosen to remove information about themself, their accounts, or their works, you may not post that information on AO3 without their permission.
+However, if you have previously posted content on AO3 that includes information about an individual, and that information was public at the time you posted your content, we will not generally require you to remove the information. Exceptions may apply if we are required to remove personal information for legal reasons.
If the comment contained personal information sufficient to identify you in the real world (such as a full legal name, an email address, or a phone number) then you can contact the Policy & Abuse committee to request its removal. However, we will not remove guest comments simply because they contain a first name, username, or online handle.
We will not delete orphaned works that don't violate our Terms of Service. However, if you left identifying information on an orphaned work (such as your name, email address, or social media account) and you would no longer like that information to be public, then you can contact the Support committee to request the removal of that specific information from the work.
+We will not delete orphaned works that don't violate our Terms of Service. However, if you left identifying information on an orphaned work (such as your name, pseud, email address, or social media account) and you would no longer like that information to be public, then you can contact the Support committee to request the removal of that specific information from the work.
We do not permit users to misrepresent themselves as another person or entity (such as a corporation or government agency), particularly in order to deceive others, violate our Terms of Service, or otherwise cause harm.
+We do not permit users to misrepresent themselves as another person or entity (such as a corporation or government agency), particularly in order to deceive others, violate our Terms of Service, or otherwise cause harm. However, in general, we won't consider the mere existence of a similar or identical username to be impersonation.
Roleplay is permitted when the assumption of such a persona is clearly disclosed (such as in a user profile or in another manner appropriate under the circumstances) and it doesn't otherwise violate the Terms of Service, including the harassment policy. Fiction (including RPF in first-person format) clearly marked as such will not be considered impersonation. Please consult our RPF policy for further information.
In general, you can use a joke celebrity pseudonym, or roleplay as a celebrity, so long as you clearly disclaim that you are not actually that person.
-You're allowed to mimic functions inside fictional content, so long as the content is clearly fictional – fiction is not impersonation. However, if you're posting content outside of a fictional context, then you can't do so in an impersonating manner. For example, using the username "orphaned_account" is not allowed, as that could cause users to confuse your user page with AO3's official orphan_account.
Back to Top | Fannish Identities and Impersonation FAQ
Both AO3 users and non-users can complain about harassment. The line between user and non-user can be blurry, so our policy covers both. However, writing RPF (real-person fiction) never constitutes harassment in and of itself, even if the content is objectionable. Please refer to our RPF policy for more information.
+Both AO3 users and non-users can complain about harassment. The line between users and non-users can be blurry, so our policy covers both. However, writing RPF (real-person fiction) never constitutes harassment in and of itself, even if the content is objectionable. Please refer to our RPF policy for more information.
Yes. This includes works, tags, comments, usernames, pseuds, profiles, icons, and every other type of content that can be submitted to, hosted on, or embedded on AO3, now or in the future. The harassment policy applies to everything a user does on AO3 and all communications with AO3 volunteers.
The use of any tool or feature could constitute harassment if it's being used to create a hostile environment. When investigating harassment, we will consider relevant context. For example, someone who has a username, pseud, or icon that is negative towards an individual or group could harass those people by leaving comments on their works, even if that same username, pseud, or icon would not be harassing in other contexts.
@@ -796,11 +870,14 @@We recommend that you avoid engaging with content that you do not like. If you encounter content on AO3 that you find upsetting or disturbing, you should navigate away from the content and use filters or muting to avoid encountering it again. Users are allowed to post fanworks about any topic, regardless of how offensive it is to other users or if the canon creators would approve. If the content doesn't violate a specific clause of our Terms of Service, the fanwork is allowed – we do not remove content for offensiveness. In addition, be aware that joining in on group bullying to force someone to remove their works is likely to be deemed harassment.
If you don't want people to comment on your works, then you should block them. You are allowed to make polite requests that other groups of fans do not interact with you. If you insult those people, or threaten them in any way, you are in violation of our harassment policy.
-You may not threaten other groups of fans. There is no exception for jokes or memes.
+No. You may not threaten other groups of fans. There is no exception for jokes or memes.
As an AO3 user, it is your responsibility to ensure that you are following our Terms of Service. If we receive a report about you, you will only be told about it if our investigation reveals that you did in fact violate our Terms of Service. In such cases, we will let you know about your violation regardless of who reported it.
+As an AO3 user, it is your responsibility to ensure that your account and all of the works and other content you post are in compliance with the Terms of Service. If we receive a report about you, you will only be told about it if our investigation reveals that you did in fact violate the Terms of Service. In such cases, we will let you know about your violation regardless of who reported it.
While malicious reporting is harassment, such reports are rarely about content that actually violates the Terms of Service. Most reports about violating content are submitted by users who happen to encounter such content during the course of their normal browsing. We do not generally consider a valid report to be harassment of the subject of the report.
+While we can and do take action against specific accounts being used for harassment, banning emails or IP addresses of persistent trolls is typically ineffective. No matter how many we block, a dedicated individual can easily switch to a new email or IP address within seconds. There's no way for us to know what the new email or IP address is until they are reported to us again.
+Instead, if you experience or witness harassment on AO3, please contact the Policy & Abuse committee. We also strongly recommend making use of our muting and blocking features to avoid specific users or prevent guest comments.
Yes, it is possible that a username that is no longer used by its original user will be available to you.
Usernames on AO3 aren't reserved, even if you've used that name before on AO3 or another site. In general, we won't consider the mere existence of a similar or identical username to be impersonation. If another AO3 account is already using your desired username, then you can create a pseud with that name, but you can't make the other person give up their username. However, if someone starts claiming to be you on AO3, or otherwise starts behaving in a harassing manner, then you can submit an Abuse report.
-Usernames on AO3 aren't reserved, even if you've used that name before on AO3 or another site. In general, we won't consider the mere existence of a similar or identical username to be impersonation. If another AO3 account is already using your desired username, then you can create a pseud with that name, but you can't make the other person give up their username. However, if someone starts claiming to be you on AO3, or otherwise starts behaving in a harassing manner, then you can submit an Abuse report.
+User icons appear on pages that don't have rating filters, such as user profiles and comments. This means that other users have little ability to avoid encountering them. Therefore, user icons operate under more restrictive rules than rated, tagged, and warned-for content.
The user icon policy is not the general fanart policy. Although AO3 does not have native media hosting, images and other file types can be embedded in a work. For more information about what is allowed in fanart, please refer to Can I embed explicit images in my fanworks?
-User profiles can contain information about the user, such as their fandom preferences and links to other sites on which the user can be found. User profiles must comply with AO3's policies on commercial promotion, harassment, impersonation, copyright, and other general content rules.
+If you use someone else's image for your user icon, you must also provide appropriate credit to the original creator, for example by using alt text.
+Your profile page can contain information about you, such as your fandom preferences and links to other sites on which you can be found. User profiles must comply with AO3's policies on commercial promotion, harassment, impersonation, copyright, and other general content rules.
Back to Top | Usernames, Icons, and Profiles FAQ
AO3 has a Ratings system and an Archive Warnings system. These provide basic information about the intensity and type of content that may be present in a work. The only rating or warning information AO3 requires is listed within these two systems. Creators may add more information in the summaries, notes, or Additional tags of their works, but they are not required to do so.
If a creator doesn't want to put a specific Rating and/or Archive Warning on their works, then they can opt out of one or both systems by applying a non-specific Rating and/or Archive Warning.
-Non-specific tags indicate that the creator has chosen not to use a more specific tag in that field. Any user who wants to avoid a particular rating and/or type of content should also avoid any work labeled with a non-specific Rating and/or Archive Warning. The non-specific Rating tag is "Not Rated", and the non-specific Archive Warning is the "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label. (Tags are also sometimes referred to as labels.)
+Non-specific tags indicate that the creator has chosen not to use a more specific tag in that field. Any user who wants to avoid a particular rating and/or type of content should also avoid any work labeled with a non-specific Rating and/or Archive Warning. The non-specific Rating tag is "Not Rated", and the non-specific Archive Warning is the "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label. (Tags are also sometimes referred to as labels.)
AO3 has five different rating tags that creators can apply to their works:
The Archive Warnings system consists of several warning tags, which creators are able to choose from when posting their fanwork. At least one of the following options must be chosen before a work can be posted:
If your work contains graphic depictions of violence, major character death, depictions of rape or non-consensual sex, or depictions of underage sexual activity, then you must use either the relevant specific Archive Warning or the non-specific "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label.
We wished to limit the number and type of Archive Warnings so that they could be easily used by creators from a wide variety of fandoms, and so that each Archive Warning could be fairly and consistently enforced by our all-volunteer Policy & Abuse committee. We decided that we could not reasonably expect fair enforcement of a rule requiring warnings for concepts beyond those listed in the Archive Warnings.
+We wished to limit the number and type of Archive Warnings so that they could be easily used by creators from a wide variety of fandoms, and so that each Archive Warning could be fairly and consistently enforced by our all-volunteer Policy & Abuse committee. We decided that we could not reasonably expect fair enforcement of a rule requiring warnings for concepts beyond those listed in the Archive Warnings.
Because the Archive Warnings policy is deliberately minimal, this may be the case. We encourage you to use the Additional tags, summaries, and user-provided bookmarks and recommendations to screen for fanworks you'll enjoy, and you may wish to comment on a creator's work when you feel that further tags would be desirable. Please be respectful when you do, and keep in mind that they may choose not to add such extra tags.
Yes, you can. For example, you could select both "Major Character Death" and "Underage Sex" if a fanwork contains both elements, or "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" and "Underage Sex" if you want to disclose the underage sexual content but don't want to say whether the work contains major character death.
Yes. The "No Archive Warnings Apply" label can be added to a work regardless of any other Archive Warnings, so it only has meaning when no other Archive Warnings are present on the work.
+Yes. The "No Archive Warnings Apply" label can be added to a work regardless of any other Archive Warnings that are present on the work. If "No Archive Warnings Apply" is accompanied by another Archive Warning (including the non-specific "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label), then the other warning has precedence. We will not remove the "No Archive Warnings Apply" label from a work.
If you would like to avoid encountering works with content pertaining to a specific Archive Warning when browsing AO3, then you should exclude the specific Archive Warning as well as the "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label.
This is the kind of decision that is up to the creator's discretion. In general, we will not recategorize a fanwork in response to a complaint when the content at issue is a reference or is otherwise not portrayed in explicit detail.
@@ -956,46 +1034,46 @@Underage Sex refers to descriptions or depictions of sexual activity involving characters under the age of eighteen (18). In general, we rely on creators to use their judgment about the line between reference and description or depiction. Sexual activity does not include dating activities such as kissing; but again, we rely on creators to use their judgment about what is generally understood to be sexual activity. Creators may always specify the age of the characters in their work.
Though there is no international consensus, there is a trend to focus on 18 as an important age for depictions of sexual activity. Thus, we decided that 18 would be helpful for the maximum number of users, including audiences as well as creators, though we recognize that no solution is perfect for everyone. We encourage creators and bookmarkers to be more specific in tags or notes where this would be useful to potential audiences.
-The "Underage Sex" warning on AO3 is used for fanworks depicting sexual activity involving humans under 18 as measured in Earth years, regardless of the fictional setting or users' local laws.
-The primary use of the "Underage Sex" warning is to identify fanworks depicting sexual activity involving humans under the age of 18 as measured in Earth years. Please use your judgment for other situations. If the fanwork does not include a depiction of sexual activity with a human under 18 years old, then we will not generally consider it "underage sex", though creators may use the Archive Warning if they feel it accurately represents their intent. As always, we encourage creators and bookmarkers to be more specific in tags or summaries where this would be useful to potential audiences.
-If the characters' ages in the fanwork are ambiguous, then we will assume the characters have been "aged up", even if they are underage in the canon setting.
No. Archive Warnings apply to the fictional content depicted in the work, so a work featuring a sexual relationship between an adult and a minor would need to use the "Underage Sex" Archive Warning. However, unless a character is clearly depicted in the work as unwilling to engage in sexual activity, then the "Rape/Non-Con" warning (or the "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label) is not required, regardless of the age of any of the characters.
+No. Archive Warnings apply to the fictional content depicted in the work, so a work featuring a sexual relationship between an adult and a minor would need to use the "Underage Sex" Archive Warning (or the "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label). However, unless a character is clearly depicted in the work as unwilling to engage in sexual activity, then the "Rape/Non-Con" warning (or the "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label) is not required, regardless of the age of any of the characters.
The primary use of the "Rape/Non-Con" warning is to identify fanworks depicting characters who are clearly unwilling or otherwise forced to engage in sexual activities. Please use your judgment for other situations. When a fanwork features unclear or dubious consent ("dubcon"), we will defer to the creator's decision on how to categorize their work.
If a character has a significant presence in the fanwork, and they die during the course of the story, then the work would require the "Major Character Death" warning (or the "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label). This warning is also required when the fanwork is focused on the character's death, even if it happened prior to the start of the work. It doesn't matter whether the character is a main character or a side character in canon – it's what is in the fanwork that counts. For example, even if a character has only one line in canon, a fanwork that is primarily about that character's funeral and how much their partner misses them would merit this warning.
-If the character returns to life or is revealed to not be dead within the same fanwork, then you don't need to apply the "Major Character Death" warning (or the "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label) for this character.
Keep in mind that Archive Warnings apply to the entirety of an individual fanwork's posted content, not to any drafts or sequels. If you appear to have killed off a significant character in a specific work, but plan for them to return in a future chapter or sequel, we suggest using "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" as the content currently posted does feature character death.
-Please use your best judgment for characters who are or become undead, mechanized, or otherwise non-human. If the character is generally still able to think or act in a somewhat human fashion throughout the course of the story, then the "Major Character Death" warning is not needed. When in doubt, we will defer to the fanwork creator's discretion about whether a character has meaningfully died.
-This is the kind of decision that is up to the creator's discretion. In general, we will not recategorize a fanwork in response to a complaint when the content at issue is a reference or is otherwise not graphic.
-No. The presence of an Archive Warning indicates that the work may contain such content, but it is not a guarantee. This includes works marked with "No Archive Warnings Apply". If this warning is accompanied by another Archive Warning (including the non-specific "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" label), then the other warning has precedence.
Ratings are a measure of the intensity of overall content. Warnings refer to a specific type of content that is present.
For example, a work may be rated Explicit because it describes an extended, violent torture scene, or because it has a detailed depiction of consensual sex – or both. The rating tells you only that there may be adult content, and does not inform you what type of adult content it is. A warning indicates the work may contain an "onscreen" depiction of a specific type of content, and does not inform you of the level of detail in which it is described. For example, a work rated "Teen" might also carry the "Major Character Death" warning.
Some users may prefer not to read works with particular ratings and/or warnings, while others may search out works with those same ratings and/or warnings. Our goal is to provide the maximum amount of control and flexibility possible for all users of AO3, both creators and audiences alike, so that each user can customize their own experience. Creators can choose to provide a specific rating and/or Archive Warning(s), or they can choose to opt out of providing a specific rating and/or Archive Warning by using "Not Rated" and/or "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings", respectively.
-Yes, absolutely. For example, you could use "Not Rated" and "Rape/Non-Con" for a work that has an explicit rape scene. Or you could rate a work "General" but choose not to warn about the main character dying by using "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings".
When making rating/warning decisions, creators should take into account any content within the work, including embedded images and videos. As with all other content, creators' decisions are presumed reasonable, and using "Not Rated" or "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" will always be sufficient.
Explicit drawings and other non-photorealistic artwork are generally allowed to be embedded in a work, as long as the work's rating and warnings appropriately describe both the embedded and the textual content. If you are using other people's images to illustrate your fanwork, you must embed from a source authorized by the creator and provide appropriate credit.
-You may not embed sexually explicit or suggestive photographic or photorealistic images in works that contain underage sexual content or any other contextual indication (such as in the tags, notes, or text of the work) that the characters may be under the age of 18. This includes (but is not limited to) porn gifs, photo manipulations, and computer-generated or "AI" images.
+You may not embed sexually explicit or suggestive photographic or photorealistic images in works that contain underage sexual content or any other contextual indication (such as in the tags, notes, or text of the work) that the characters may be under the age of 18. This includes (but is not limited to) photographs of children, porn gifs, photo manipulations, photorealistic computer-generated or "AI" images, and other linked or embedded images that could potentially be mistaken for photographs of real humans.
Explicit or graphic content in a summary or tag does not violate the Content Policy, as long as the work is appropriately rated and warned. Please use your judgment about what will best identify and describe your fanworks. The summary and tags are part of your work, and your choice of rating and warnings must reflect all parts of your work.
+Explicit or graphic content in a summary or tag does not violate the Content Policy, as long as the work is appropriately rated and warned. Please use your judgment about what will best identify and describe your fanworks. The summary and tags are part of your work, and your choice of rating and warnings must reflect all parts of your work.
No. We will only review a work that has been reported to us for potentially violating the ratings or warnings policies.
Please see the Mandatory Tags policy for details. If we uphold a complaint, we will ask the creator to amend the rating or warning as necessary. If the creator fails to do so, the Policy & Abuse committee may add the non-specific "Not Rated" and/or "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" labels as appropriate. In general, a fanwork will not be removed from AO3 merely for not being correctly labeled. However, repeated or deliberate mislabeling may result in additional consequences.
-Please refer to the Mandatory Tags policy for details. If we uphold a complaint, we will ask the creator to amend the rating or warning as necessary. If the creator fails to do so, the Policy & Abuse committee may add the non-specific "Not Rated" and/or "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" labels as appropriate. In general, a fanwork will not be removed from AO3 merely for not being correctly labeled. However, repeated or deliberate mislabeling may result in additional consequences.
+No. We will never require an Archive Warning to be removed from a work. This includes works marked with "No Archive Warnings Apply". The presence of an Archive Warning indicates that the work may contain such content, but it is not a guarantee.
+Some creators prefer not to assign specific ratings or warnings to their works, or may not be certain if some content in their work "counts" for a required Archive Warning. Our policy aims to enable creators to opt in or out of using specific ratings or warnings while still allowing users to filter out unwanted content. Works for which creators have opted out of providing specific ratings and/or warnings will be labeled "Not Rated" and/or "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings". These options aid users in decision-making, albeit with more limited detail than a specific rating or warning tag would.
Users who wish to avoid works labeled with specific ratings or Archive Warnings can filter them out or exclude them from searches. Users trying to avoid all possibility of encountering specific ratings or warnings should also avoid works marked as "Not Rated" or "Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings" in the same way, because these works may contain content pertaining to any rating or warning, respectively.
@@ -1017,16 +1095,17 @@If you wish to provide other users with more information about your work, you are welcome to do so using the non-mandatory tag fields (such as Additional tags), your work summary, and/or the notes of your work.
@@ -1046,31 +1125,33 @@In general, we will assume good faith from creators. However, if it is clear that the language tag used does not apply to the work, then we may update the work's language tag.
In order to report a work that uses an incorrect language tag, please contact the Support committee and make sure to include a link to the work in your report.
The Policy & Abuse committee may remove a fandom tag when there is no relationship between the particular fandom itself and the work. For example, a fanwork that discusses vampire physiology and uses only examples from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The Vampire Diaries should not add in fifteen additional fandom tags simply because those fandoms also feature vampires.
+The Policy & Abuse committee may remove a fandom tag when there is no relationship between the particular fandom itself and the work. For example, a fanwork that discusses vampire physiology and uses only examples from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The Vampire Diaries should not add in fifteen additional fandom tags simply because those fandoms also feature vampires.
Note that we will apply this rule restrictively. We will not intervene in cases of disagreement over, for example, whether a movie-based work can use the fandom tag for a comic when there are both movie and comics versions of a source. This is the kind of decision a creator is best suited to make and falls within our policy of deference to the creator.
-If you believe a work's tags are misleading, then we encourage direct, polite conversation with the creator. However, if the work has fandom tags that aren't represented in the work, then you can report that to the Policy & Abuse committee.
+If you believe a work's tags are misleading, then we encourage direct, polite conversation with the creator. If the work has fandom tags that aren't represented in the work, then you can report that to the Policy & Abuse committee. However, we will not add, edit, or remove incorrect category, relationship, character, or additional tags.
+Please refer to the Mandatory Tags policy for details. If we determine that a work is in violation of the fandom tag policy, we will ask the creator to amend the fandom tags as necessary. If the creator fails to do so, the Policy & Abuse committee may remove inapplicable fandom tags or add the non-specific "Unspecified Fandom" tag as appropriate. In general, a fanwork will not be removed from AO3 merely for not being correctly labeled. However, repeated or deliberate mislabeling may result in additional consequences.
No, we will not require that a creator add a specific fandom tag to their work. However, we may apply the non-specific "Unspecified Fandom" tag if the creator has not applied any suitable fandom tags themselves. If you would like to avoid encountering a particular work, then we recommend that you mute the creator or the work.
+No. We will not require that a creator add a specific fandom tag to their work. However, we may apply the non-specific "Unspecified Fandom" tag if the creator has not applied any suitable fandom tags themselves. If you would like to avoid encountering a particular work, then we recommend that you mute the creator or the work.
RPF stands for Real Person Fiction. "RPF" is often used to distinguish fandom tags intended for fanworks about a canon's real-life creators (actors, directors, voice actors, authors, etc.), as opposed to fanworks about the fictional characters that appear in any books, movies, or other canons.
When you are posting your work, you may find that entering the name of a canon into the fandom tag field results in two canonical tags appearing in the autocomplete, one with "RPF" at the end and one without. If your work is about the real people who created the canon, rather than about the fictional canon itself, then you should use the RPF fandom tag for your work. If your work is about the fictional characters or universe, you should use the non-RPF fandom tag instead.
In some cases, RPF fandoms and works don't have fandom tags with "RPF" at the end. For example, canonical fandom tags about musicians or bands may consist of the names of those individuals or groups. Fandom tags that consist of the name(s) of real people are also considered RPF fandom tags and can be used on works about those people.
For more information about RPF and non-RPF tags, please refer to the Tags FAQ. The Policy & Abuse committee may remove fandom tags from your work if you've used a non-RPF tag for RPF content, or vice versa.
You should not use RPF fandom tags unless your work is about the real people who contributed to the creation of the fictional canon. If the reader or self-insert character is interacting with the fictional characters from the canon and not with the canon's writers, actors, etc., then the work is not RPF and should only be tagged with the non-RPF fandom tag.
+You should not use RPF fandom tags for a non-RPF fandom unless your work is about the real people who contributed to the creation of the fictional canon. If the reader or self-insert character is interacting with the fictional characters from the canon and not with the canon's writers, actors, etc., then the work is not RPF and should only be tagged with the non-RPF fandom tag.
No. To use a specific fandom tag, the work must currently contain fanwork content pertaining to that fandom. Once you post a chapter featuring characters from or set in the universe of that fandom, you may add the fandom tag to the work. Until then, you can use the notes, summary, or Additional tags to let other users know about your plans.
Our volunteer tag wranglers connect tags to each other to help users locate fanworks. However, at times this can lead to unexpected search results. If you believe that a tag has been incorrectly wrangled, you can contact the Support committee with a brief explanation of why these tags shouldn't be connected together.
-If the language tag is the only miscategorization on the work, you may report it to the Support committee. If there is any other type of miscategorization or violation of the Terms of Service (for example, if the work is not a fanwork or is incorrectly rated), you should report it to the Policy & Abuse committee instead, whether or not there is an incorrect language tag on the work.
+Our volunteer tag wranglers connect tags to each other to help users locate fanworks. However, at times this can lead to unexpected search results. If you believe that a tag has been incorrectly wrangled, you can contact the Support committee with a brief explanation of why these tags shouldn't be connected together.
+Incorrect language tags are generally handled by the Support committee. However, if you are reporting a work that has an incorrect language tag and also violates the Terms of Service in some other way (for example, if the work is not a fanwork or is incorrectly rated), you should report it to the Policy & Abuse committee instead.
The Policy & Abuse committee will only evaluate the accuracy of tags in mandatory fields. We will not add, edit, or remove incorrect category, relationship, character, or additional tags. Our resources are limited and it would be challenging to impartially and fairly establish or enforce accuracy rules for these types of tags. However, our general policies against harassment and spam apply to all tags, as they do to any content posted on AO3.
-The only tags displayed on the fanwork itself will be the tags that the creator added to it. If another user bookmarks the work, they may add tags to the bookmark. Users can search for bookmarks with Tag Search or Bookmark Search. Bookmark tags are also visible when viewing a user's public bookmarks. However, bookmark tags will not impact or appear in results when using Work Search or browsing works listings.
+The only tags displayed on the fanwork itself will be the tags that the creator added to it. If another user bookmarks the work, they may add tags to the bookmark. Users can search for bookmarks with Bookmark Search or Tag Search. Bookmark tags are also visible when viewing a user's public bookmarks. However, bookmark tags will not impact or appear in results when using Work Search or browsing works listings.
We recommend that you mute the bookmarker. In general, tags and notes on bookmarks can be positive or negative. Like any other content, tags are subject to the Content Policy, so if the tag violates our harassment, personal information, or other policies, please report it. However, criticism of a fanwork is not considered harassment in and of itself. Bookmark tags and notes will not automatically be displayed on fanworks, in order to allow you to avoid them.
-We recommend that you mute the bookmarker. In general, tags and notes on bookmarks can be positive or negative. Like any other content, tags are subject to the Content Policy, so if the tag violates our harassment, personal information, or other policies, please report it. However, criticism of a fanwork is not considered harassment in and of itself. Bookmark tags and notes will not automatically be displayed on fanworks, in order to allow you to avoid them.
+Please check out our Tags FAQ for more information about how tags function and how they are generally used.
You shouldn't encounter the spam filter if you're logged in. If we discover accounts created solely to post spam, we will permanently suspend those accounts, but such cases are always reviewed by members of the Policy & Abuse committee. If you're a human being reading this FAQ, you shouldn't worry about the automated spam-control measures.
+Some content uploaded to AO3 is automatically checked for spam, such as comments from guests and new accounts. If you're a human being reading this FAQ, and you have an established AO3 account, you are unlikely to encounter problems with our automated spam-control measures. If you receive an error message indicating that your comment looks like spam, or telling you to retry later, we suggest removing any links from your comment, ensuring that the wording isn't very similar to other comments you have posted recently, and waiting a while before trying to post the comment again.
+The Policy & Abuse committee will permanently suspend accounts created solely for spamming purposes, and may also remove some or all of the content associated with those accounts.
If you believe your account has been incorrectly banned for posting spam, you can contact the Policy & Abuse committee.Basically, we mean attempts to hack the site or deliberately exploit a code vulnerability in order to engage in destructive behavior on AO3. Spreading viruses or other unwanted programs, redirecting users to spam sites, or trying to undermine or evade compliance with our Terms of Service through technological means are all examples of attempting to interfere with or threaten the technical integrity of the site.
-No, this is just a security policy. You will be able to have plenty of nifty formatting, but not everything imaginable. As a practical security matter, we do not allow JavaScript in works posted on AO3, and only allow a limited subset of HTML and CSS. This is because there is no secure way to allow people to start uploading unfiltered code. For content that uses a lot of custom code, we recommend hosting it on your own website. You can make a bookmark or post a simpler version on AO3 and link to the fancier version in the notes.
+We allow a limited amount of HTML formatting in works, comments, and other content. You can also use CSS in work skins to alter the way your work appears to readers.
+As a practical security matter, we do not allow JavaScript in works posted on AO3, because there is no secure way to allow people to start uploading unfiltered code. If you would like to post a work that uses a lot of custom code, we recommend hosting it on your own website. You can create a bookmark, or post a simpler version as a work on AO3 and link to the fully functional version in the work notes.
The use of bots or scraping for spam, commercial promotion, or other purposes that violate our policies is forbidden. This includes scraping AO3 for the purposes of obtaining material for commercial generative AI or creating an app that hosts or paywalls AO3 content.
The use of bots or scraping for purposes that do not violate our policies is generally allowed. However, we reserve the right to implement robots.txt or other protocols limiting what bots can do, or to notify you and ask you to discontinue if a bot or scraping program is causing problems for the site. At our discretion, we may also ban specific bots or other programs from accessing AO3.
@@ -1170,7 +1253,7 @@AO3 is a site for fans to share fanworks. When you post a work and set it to be available to the general public, you are agreeing to make that content available to everyone. Similarly, the purpose of using other public-facing AO3 features is because you want that content to be available to the public. When you post a work and set it to be available to registered AO3 users only, you are agreeing to make that content available to those users.
-Similarly, other AO3 features or content may be accessible by all registered AO3 users or only accessible to specific registered AO3 users (such as the co-creator(s) of a work or the maintainer(s) of a collection). The purpose of using these features is because you want that content to be available to those people. For example, if you're collaborating with someone else on a draft work where you have added them as a co-creator, then you want your co-creator to be able to access the draft. If you have submitted a work to a collection, then you have chosen to submit content to a part of AO3 that the collection maintainer controls. In all cases, we need to collect, process, and retain certain information about you and your content in order to make it available to those people.
+Similarly, other AO3 features or content may be accessible by all registered AO3 users or only accessible to specific registered AO3 users (such as the co-creator(s) of a work or the maintainer(s) of a collection). The purpose of using these features is because you want that content to be available to those people. For example, if you're collaborating with someone else on a draft work where you have added them as a co-creator, then you want your co-creator to be able to access the draft. If you have submitted a work to a collection, then you have chosen to submit content to a part of AO3 that the collection maintainer controls. In all cases, we need to collect, process, and retain certain information about you and your content in order to make it available to those people.
Usernames and pseudonyms allow you to develop your account as a fannish identity on AO3. When you take actions while using a username or pseud (as opposed to not being logged in, or not using a pseud), it's because you want your username or pseud to be associated with those actions and/or the content that you've uploaded. In order to connect your actions and content to your AO3 account and/or pseud, we need to collect, process, and retain the associated personal information about your account, including the text you entered for your username or pseud.
Several of our features are designed to let you customize the way AO3 is displayed to you or the ways in which other users can interact with you. We need the data collected by these features in order to customize your AO3 experience in the ways you've requested. For example, we need access to your blocklist in order to ensure that users you have blocked can't leave comments or kudos on your works or reply to your comments; and we need access to your mutelist to ensure that you won't be shown works, bookmarks, comments, or series by users you've muted. Similarly, when you update your preferences, we need to collect, process, and retain the content and/or information that you provided in order to implement those preferences for you.
In order to be able to enforce the Terms of Service, ensure we are compliant with applicable legislation, and handle any legal matters that may arise, AO3 administrators (such as the Policy & Abuse committee, the Legal committee, and the OTW Board of Directors) may need to view content that was uploaded, or the associated data, even if that content is not visible to the general public or to other AO3 users.
+In order to be able to enforce the Terms of Service, ensure we are compliant with applicable legislation, and handle any legal matters that may arise, AO3 administrators (such as the Policy & Abuse committee, the Legal committee, and the OTW Board of Directors) may need to view content that was uploaded, or the associated data, even if that content is not visible to the general public or to other AO3 users.
We also need the data collected by each feature to internally manage AO3. For example, we want to count only one view of a URL per cookie session on the "Hit" count for a work. Temporarily collecting, processing, and retaining the IP addresses of users who leave kudos while logged out permits us to conduct internal management of kudos and avoid duplication of kudos, without requiring you to log in and associate your username with the kudos. Our systems and administrators need the data to manage our services, prevent abuse or spam, and maintain the integrity of AO3.
It's possible you may need assistance with your account. In such cases, the Support committee or other AO3 administrators may need to look at your content or associated data in order to troubleshoot a problem you're having, assist you with using a particular AO3 feature, or diagnose or solve a possible bug. For example, if you're having difficulty with not receiving emails about comments on your works, an administrator may need to check whether your Preferences are set correctly.
+It's possible you may need assistance with your account. In such cases, the Support committee or other AO3 administrators may need to look at your content or associated data in order to troubleshoot a problem you're having, assist you with using a particular AO3 feature, or diagnose or solve a possible bug. For example, if you're having difficulty with not receiving emails about comments on your works, an administrator may need to check whether your Preferences are set correctly.
When you post or edit a work on AO3, you can choose to restrict access to other logged-in users only. You can change this setting at any time. If the work was originally accessible to AO3 users only, and you (or a co-creator) update the work to make it accessible to the general public, then the work and any content associated with the work (such as bookmarks, comments, or series) will become accessible to the general public at that time. Similarly, if your work was previously set to be accessible to the general public, and you update the work to make it accessible to AO3 users only, then the content associated with the work will no longer be accessible to the general public.
If you have a series where all works in the series are only accessible to other AO3 users, and you (or a series co-creator) add to the series a work that is accessible to the general public, then the series content will also become accessible to the general public at that time. This applies to the series content only, and not to specific works in the series, which are all controlled separately.
@@ -1205,19 +1288,24 @@None. We do not and will not sell, trade, or rent information, including your personal information.
-The CCPA only applies to for-profit entities. Because the Organization for Transformative Works is a non-profit, we are not required to have such a procedure. More importantly, we do not have such a procedure because we do not sell, trade, or rent information to third parties for any reason, including for direct marketing purposes.
+If you are located in the European Union, the United Kingdom, or parts of the United States, you may have rights regarding your personal information or personal data that qualifies as such under the laws of your jurisdiction.
-As provided by the laws of your applicable jurisdiction, these rights may include:
+If you are located in another jurisdiction, we recommend that you check your local data privacy laws to know what your rights are regarding your personal information.
+As provided by the laws of your applicable jurisdiction, these rights may include:
We rely on the following lawful grounds to process personal information from users in the EU and the UK:
+We rely on the following lawful grounds to process personal information from users in the European Union and the United Kingdom:
If we are processing your personal information based on the grounds that you consented to it, you have the right to withdraw your consent for such processing at any time. Withdrawing your consent does not affect the lawfulness of consent-based processing that occurred prior to when your consent was withdrawn.
-These protections are not limited specifically to users from the EU and the UK. We limit our data processing in this way for all users. If you have questions regarding the protection of your personal information, you can contact the Policy & Abuse committee.
+These protections are not limited specifically to users from the European Union and the United Kingdom. We limit our data processing in this way for all users. If you have questions regarding the protection of your personal information, you can contact the Policy & Abuse committee.
To exercise the rights available to you as a data subject or consumer under applicable data privacy laws, contact the Policy & Abuse committee. In order for us to confirm your request, the email address you enter must be the one associated with your account (if applicable) and you must be able to send and receive emails from that address. In the subject and description of your request, please specify which data privacy law (GDPR, CCPA, etc.) applies to you, and clearly state what kind of data request you are making (for example, you can request a copy of your personal information). We may require you to submit additional personal information necessary to verify your identity and status as a data subject. Repeated requests within a 1-year timeframe may incur a fee.
-Please note that you may be able to exercise some of these rights without our intervention. For example, if you are a registered user, you can access and update certain personal information via your account preferences.
-The CCPA only applies to for-profit entities. Because the Organization for Transformative Works is a non-profit, we are not required to have such a procedure. More importantly, we do not have such a procedure because we do not sell, trade, or rent information to third parties for any reason, including for direct marketing purposes.
+Please note that you may be able to exercise some of these rights without our intervention. For example, if you are a registered user, you can access and update certain personal information via your account preferences. You can also delete your account, which will delete all personal information associated with your account (although some content you have posted on AO3 may remain after your account is deleted).
+If someone else submits your email address to AO3, for example to request an account invitation or post a guest comment, automated emails may be sent to your email address.
+Receiving an invitation does not result in the creation of an account unless you sign up using the link in the invitation email. Receiving a comment reply notification about a guest comment does not mean that an account with your email exists on AO3. You are free to delete these emails at any time.
+If you do not have an AO3 account and you continue to receive unsolicited emails from AO3, you can contact the Support committee and ask them to block your email address. This will prevent you from receiving automated emails from AO3, including account invitations or comment reply notifications. If you would like to use your email address to sign up for an AO3 account or comment as a guest in the future, you will need to contact the Support committee again to unblock your email address.
+The Policy & Abuse committee is only responsible for content posted on AO3. If you have an issue with content on a third-party platform (for example, Google search results, the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, or content reposted on another site), you will need to directly contact that platform yourself to have the information removed.
Some web browsers, mobile applications, and operating systems allow users to signal their preferences regarding the tracking of their personal information. These are known as Do Not Track (DNT) signals or opt-out preference signals. AO3 does not respond to DNT or opt-out preference signals because we do not use, sell, or share your personal information for targeted advertising purposes. In addition, we collect only the minimum data necessary to operate the site and/or that you have consented to provide to us. Without this minimum data, you can't access the site.
If a standard for online tracking is adopted that we must follow in the future, we will inform you about that practice in a revised version of the Privacy Policy.