Visa, MasterCard drop Backpage.com after sex trafficking claims

[Shea Veile]

Visa, MasterCard drop Backpage.com after sex trafficking claims


http://money.cnn.com/2015/07/02/news...ion/index.html


It just got tougher to post an ad for "adult services" on Backpage.com.

Visa (V) and MasterCard said this week that they will no longer let cardholders make any purchase on the classified advertising website, which is best known for its mature content.

The move was prompted by a campaign waged by Sheriff Tom Dart, of Cook County, Illinois. Dart sent letters to both companies alleging that the classified ad website is used for sex trafficking and prostitution. He estimates Backpage.com generates over $100 million in revenue annually from adult advertising.

"It has become increasingly indefensible for any corporation to willfully play a central role in an industry that reaps its cash from the victimization of women and girls across the world," he wrote.

Dart said his department has made over 800 arrests related to the site, including more than 50 sex-trafficking and prostitution busts and a juvenile sex trafficking arrest last month.

Dart also sued Craigslist in 2009 for advertising similar services, and that website later shut down its adult section. Dart told CNNMoney that he wants to show the public how "horrific" prostitution and sex-trafficking are.

"We cannot turn a blind on this and pretend this is some twisted 'Pretty Woman' situation," Dart said.

Representatives for the Dallas-based Backpage.com had no comment.

"MasterCard has rules that prohibit our cards from being used for illegal or brand-damaging activities," said spokesman Seth Eisen.

Visa's statement said that the company "has a long history of working with law enforcement to safeguard the integrity of the payment system, and we will continue to do so."

Earlier this year, American Express (AXP) announced that it stopped doing business with Backpage.

According to Dart's office, Bitcoin is now the only currency that can be used on Backpage.com.


CNNMoney (New York) July 2, 2015: 2:36 PM ET


.

[Chung Tran]

nice post, thanks for that.. now..

I don't know whether to brace myself for an almost immediate 20% rate hike from ECCIE Providers, or..

anticipate a deluge of new ECCIE Providers, and prices dropping by 15%..

robberies, petty crime and burglaries may go up.. Pimpin' aint easy..

[donuts]

i have bitcoins. i sell them and i teach people how to use them. if any escorts are interested, i can definitely help them out.

[threepeckeredbillygoat]

Fuck backpage for hobbying. Sure you can find a diamond in the rough occasionaly, but I'm not that into wading through shit to find a pearl.

And fuck credit cards for anything related to hobbying. Way to much real world info involved.

[FunInDFW]

I wonder if this will prevent people/companies that use their network (or most notable Visa's network) as well to process cards. As in - is this a credit processing network block, or just a block from these services prior to getting on the processing network.

[theboss21422]

Im sure someone will be able to loophole this n back to business for backpage

[AmericanIdiot]

I've heard that Visa is allowing debit cards.

[TsSelenalopez]

Some other website will just take its place in due time, just how backpage took craigslist place... There is always another website Dart cant stop them all.

[AmericanIdiot]

http://reason.com/blog/2015/07/07/ba...-for-adult-ads

Love 'em or hate 'em, you got to be pulling for them on 1st Amend rights alone to be doing free ads right now!

In an email to some registered users, Backpage.com indicated that the charge-free adult section may be temporary. "We understand some users have had difficulty posting over the last few days," said the email. "Sign up for a free account and enjoy posting free ads until the payment issues are resolved." (Emphasis mine.) Other users got a similar email, this one urging them to sign up for a free account using the promo code FREESPEECH.

[ElisabethWhispers]

Backpage ads are free for now. I'm sure the powers that be for that company are brainstorming for a wrap around solution for this.

I asked about bitcoins over a year ago. Started a few topics about it.

But I cannot afford to lose money. Bitcoins just seems too volatile of a 'currency' for now.

Plus, I refuse to be forced to use bitcoins for a Backpage ad. Jeesh.

[!VI!]

nope iit's only 1usd now,

here is the issue with this eros, p411 and most other major sights except eccie (because its free) can be subject to targeting as well... especially if people are getting busted from these sites... ijs it cold be a real issue

[Chung Tran]

Originally Posted by AmericanIdiot

I've heard that Visa is allowing debit cards.

makes no sense.. if your concern is human trafficking, why would you care if they pay upfront or by credit? the association with the Visa name is the concern..

[Guest092216]

Huh, I might have to post an ad on BP for grins now that it's free.

I'm a cheap whore.

[Guest070818-1]

Ah, what another great attempt to catch and persecute the human traffickers who utilize BP to the fullest extent. If you can't keep on using Visa and Mastercards to potentially grab the trafficker's information, then you can make them use an untraceable currency like bitcoin.

But nonetheless, BP ads should've remained free a long time ago.

[HDnTX]

Exactly THN, if it's free we might see legit providers start running ad's. But with the same screening requirements as always.