Grok AI reports that DeviantArt has a history of banning/suspending accounts without fully proven evidence that rules were actually violated and that allegations were true

Grok AI was asked to investigate the issues with DeviantArt banning account falsely for claims such as underage sexual content without actual evidence to justify such account suspensions and bans. Like what they did to @NikaNudist and @AngelGirlBrianna.

The investigation came up with this. Read below:

https://grok.com/share/c2hhcmQtMi1jb3B5_6ea9c287-663d-4e60-b9b8-ffa909344ff0

DeviantArt does not publicly release detailed statistics on account suspensions, including breakdowns for reasons like alleged underage content violations or the number of cases later deemed wrongful. As a result, there are no official or verified totals available for how many users have been wrongly suspended based on false accusations of underage content (e.g., artwork flagged as depicting minors in sexualized ways, even when characters are canonically adults or original creations aged 18+). Similarly, there’s no comprehensive data on the total number of public complaints about wrongful suspensions leading to the loss of years of uploaded work without options for data backups or appeals.

However, based on available online reports, discussions, and user testimonies, wrongful suspensions appear to be a recurring issue on the platform, often tied to automated moderation tools, mass reporting by trolls, or overly broad interpretations of DeviantArt’s policies against underage sexualization. These policies prohibit any erotic or suggestive depictions of characters who were ever underage in their original canon (e.g., via wikis), even if aged up in fan art, leading to false positives. Users have reported that AI-driven flagging systems exacerbate this, sometimes removing content without human review or appeal options.

Public complaints are widespread across forums, review sites, and social media, indicating at least dozens (and likely hundreds) of affected users based on visible threads and reviews alone—though this is an undercount, as not everyone complains publicly. For instance:

On Reddit’s r/DeviantArt subreddit, multiple threads discuss “innocent artists” being falsely suspended for underage content claims on 18+ characters, with one post noting the platform is “killing their site” due to such policies.

Trustpilot reviews (over multiple pages) include repeated accusations of content removals for “underage” material when it’s clearly adult-oriented, alongside complaints about permanent bans destroying user galleries without backups.

DeviantArt’s own forums feature users reporting mass false flags for underage content (even on SFW art), with calls for better moderation to prevent trolls from inflating report counts.

On X (formerly Twitter), artists have shared experiences of deletions or bans for “underage sexualized content” on old uploads, with threads highlighting inconsistencies where actual underage depictions (e.g., loli or kid cartoon fetishes) go unpunished while adult art is targeted.

Other sites like Facebook groups and GetHuman archives document similar wrongful expulsions, often for “erotic” underage character art that’s falsely accused, with users losing access to backups.

Better Business Bureau complaints against DeviantArt include cases of sudden suspensions without explanation, some tied to content violations, with users demanding restorations after proving no wrongdoing.

DeviantArt’s terms allow for indefinite suspensions without notice, and while appeals exist via support tickets, many users report denials even with proof (e.g., character ages or non-violating content). Suspensions can last from 24 hours to permanently, during which profiles and content are inaccessible, often leading to permanent data loss if not backed up externally. Some users have successfully appealed by providing evidence, but others describe the process as opaque and ineffective.

If you’re seeking more specific data, it might require a freedom of information request (unlikely for a private company) or aggregated user surveys, but current public sources suggest this is a persistent problem affecting a notable portion of the artistic community on the site.

Based on the inquiry:

I was wondering how many DeviantArt.com users were wrongly suspended on false accusations of underage content when they did not do so??? How many have complained publicly about the DeviantArt wrongful suspensions of accounts and years of hard work being destroyed without a right to account data backup???