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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · 17d

Curious to learn more? Read the whole story below.

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@journalismfund.bsky.social
!

unbiasthenews.org/consent-viol...

#feministjournalism #crossborderinvestigation #onlyfans #womensrights #digitalprivacy

Consent violated: how creators pay the price for stolen OnlyFans content - Unbias The News

Up against a platform and police who seem to view abuse as inevitable, OnlyFans creators are fighting back against online harassers who gamify stealing and distributing their copyrighted material.

unbiasthenews.org

Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · 17d

“I blame our culture for being so flippant with people’s privacy — but I blame OnlyFans for letting it happen,” says Madelaine Thomas, founder of anti-theft software @imageangel.bsky.social . She created Image Angel to "act as a deterrent" — so that people cannot steal content without repercussions.

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · 17d

Law enforcement rarely helps creators who have their content stolen. As for OnlyFans: given the long-standing pervasiveness of image-based sexual abuse on the platform, a growing chorus of voices is asking two questions — could they be doing more to combat it? And if yes, why aren't they?

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · 17d

“Misogyny is a big part of this,” says Dilara Bilgisel, a sales manager at an agency helping creators whose content has been stolen. “So much of the leaked content comes from personal vendettas. These people follow the model, don’t get the attention they want and steal the content aggressively."

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · 17d

And in Czechia, several young men would often share the photos they stole alongside hateful and demeaning commentary. “They wrote that it’s like going to the store, buying two loaves of bread, and giving one to a friend,” says Lizzie, a model targeted by the leakers.

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · 17d

For example, German creator Chupz was doxxed. She suspects it's because someone outed her neighbourhood on a website devoted to sharing non-consensually obtained intimate images, including her photos and videos.

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · 17d

Latest work! For @unbiasthenews.bsky.social , I investigated what happens to OnlyFans creators whose content is stolen and shared with my colleagues @apolenarychlikova.bsky.social @kristinabohmer.bsky.social and Mayya Chernobylskaya.

unbiasthenews.org/consent-viol...

#crossborderjournalism

Consent violated: how creators pay the price for stolen OnlyFans content - Unbias The News

Up against a platform and police who seem to view abuse as inevitable, OnlyFans creators are fighting back against online harassers who gamify stealing and distributing their copyrighted material.

unbiasthenews.org

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Jun 25

And here’s a link to the investigation in question, for @taz.de : taz.de/Leaks-bei-On...

Leaks bei Onlyfans: Wenn Bilder zur Beute werden

Für Erotikbilder bei Onlyfans muss man eigentlich bezahlen, doch es werden systematisch Inhalte geklaut. Davon betroffen sind Models wie Bonny Lang.

taz.de

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Jun 25

Thanks to @journalismfund.bsky.social for supporting our investigation 🌞

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Jun 25

Just landed in lush London because tomorrow, I’ll be speaking at @tcij.org ‘s Summer Conference! Looking forward to unfolding how my colleague and I investigated the shady business of stolen OnlyFans content. If you’ll be at the conference, come say hi!

Link to the panel:
tcij.org/summer-confe...

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · May 27

@vaniamaiapress.bsky.social contributed to the reporting in this story, and our work is supported by @journalismfund.bsky.social . Read it here if you like:

fullerproject.org/story/europe...

Europe’s onlyfans performers can’t get justice

The EU considers theft of explicit images to be image-based sexual abuse. But sex workers still can't get justice.

fullerproject.org

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · May 27

As long as OnlyFans creators are excluded from the protections they're entitled to, they have to shoulder the consequences of rampant content theft — like severe anxiety, loss of income and unrestrained violations to their bodily autonomy.

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · May 27

On paper, OnlyFans content theft should be taken just as seriously as when someone’s boyfriend or girlfriend shares their photos without their consent. But in reality, that’s not what happens. In this article, we tried to find out why.

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · May 27

For OnlyFans content creators, having their photos and videos stolen and spread across the internet is something that happens on a near-daily basis. This isn't only a workplace hazard: according to lawyers, it's image-based sexual abuse — which is illegal across the EU.

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · May 27

New work for @fullerproject.org and @foreignpolicy.com ! Co-written with my fabulous colleagues @kristinabohmer.bsky.social @apolenarychlikova.bsky.social and Mayya Chernobylskaya. More about the story in a thread below!

foreignpolicy.com/2025/05/14/o...

OnlyFans Performers Can’t Get Justice

The law says stealing OnlyFans content is sexual abuse. Enforcement is another matter.

foreignpolicy.com

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Apr 7

Best cross-border team @apolenarychlikova.bsky.social , @vaniamaiapress.bsky.social and @kristinabohmer.bsky.social contributed to this investigation. This story is funded by @journalismfund.bsky.social !

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Apr 7

We discovered how these men 'teach' others to get in on the business model; exploit legal loopholes to get away with their illegal activity; and operate with arrogance — sure that no one will care enough to stop them, even if they earn money from sexual violence. (Illustration: Pauline Cremer)

Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Apr 7

Since last fall, we've been using undercover work, OSINT techniques and interviews to investigate one group that runs a business selling everything from stolen Onlyfans videos to child sex abuse material. (Illustration by Pauline Cremer)

Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Apr 7

New work for @taz.de ! I investigated the booming, misogynist marketplace around stolen Onlyfans content together with my colleague Mayya Chernobylskaya. Link below! (It's in German, so use a translation app if you want to read it.)

Leaks bei Onlyfans: Wenn Bilder zur Beute werden

Für Erotikbilder bei Onlyfans muss man eigentlich bezahlen, doch es werden systematisch Inhalte geklaut. Davon betroffen sind Models wie Bonny Lang.

taz.de

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Mar 30

Since October, I've been working on a cross-border investigation funded by @journalismfund.bsky.social . 'From OnlyFans to OnlyScams' focuses on the winners and losers in the online sex work revolution, like content creators and the people trying to exploit them.

Read about the investigation here:

From OnlyFans to OnlyScams | Journalismfund Europe

BERLIN - This investigation focuses on the winners and losers in the online sex work revolution, where people can buy digital subscriptions to explicit content. A pioneer of this model is OnlyFans, a ...

www.journalismfund.eu

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Mar 30

In the EU alone, 25% of people suffering from addiction are women. Yet worldwide, most harm reduction projects cater to men — leaving women who use drugs left behind. For INN Magazine, I wrote about organisations from Barcelona and Vancouver doing harm reduction the feminist way.

Download my story:

www.dropbox.com

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Mar 30

As climate change sizzles grapes in the south, vineyards are thriving in Scandinavia. What do this mean for Europe's culture around wine? @journalismfund.bsky.social and IJ4EU funded myself and two colleagues to investigate these questions. Read my article in @revolvemedia.bsky.social below:

Can Scandinavian Wine Thrive Amid Climate Change? | REVOLVE

As Sweden and Denmark innovate wine to withstand climate change, they also alter its cultural fundamentals – for better or worse. There’s an old legend in S ...

revolve.media

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Mar 30

For @aljazeera.com , I wrote about how Denmark's attempts to 'get rid of the Roma' (as one politician said) put women and girls at risk.

Read the article here:

Denmark’s tough laws on begging hit Roma women with few other options

Members of the Roma minority face discrimination in Denmark. Those who turn to begging are criminalised.

www.aljazeera.com

Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Mar 30

For @unbiasthenews.bsky.social and shado mag, I investigated how Denmark intentionally violates asylum seekers' human rights to get them to leave the country faster.

Read the article here:

Living in fear in Copenhagen: How Denmark is deliberately infringing on the rights of people seeking asylum - Unbias The News

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said that Denmark’s goal is to have zero asylum seekers. Since Denmark cannot stop people from seeking asylum within its territory due to its international obligat...

unbiasthenews.org

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Polina Bachlakova @pbachlakova.bsky.social · Mar 30

For @bbcradio4.bsky.social , I sang alongside the men's choir at a Danish prison called Storstrøm. In the story, I explain how budget cuts and staff shortages in the Danish penal system affect both inmates and employees — like choir instructors.

Listen to my story at 22:42 in this episode:

From Our Own Correspondent - The Wagner mutiny in Russia - BBC Sounds

The Wagner mercenaries' mutiny in Russia ended quickly, but what does it say about Russia?

www.bbc.co.uk