Passes, a direct-to-fan monetization platform for creators backed by $40 million in Series A funding, has been sued for allegedly distributing child sexual abuse material (also known as CSAM). In contrast to competitors like OnlyFans, whose guidelines don’t allow creators to post nude photos or videos, one creator sued Paz for creating, owning, and selling sexually explicit content featuring him while he was underage.
The lawsuit was filed by creator Alice Rosenblum and was first reported by The Information.
In addition to the company itself, the lawsuit was filed against Alec Celestin and Lani Ginoza (two of Pass’s “agents” in the lawsuit), as well as Pass’s founder and CEO Lucy Guo.
Rosenblum claims each defendant was aware both that she was a minor and that the company allegedly owned sexually explicit material about her.
Passus said Guo was not involved and told TechCrunch he had “no record or recollection” of Guo interacting with Rosenblum.
Regardless of the outcome, the case raises questions about how fan platforms can be used to distribute illegal content.
“The lawsuit’s allegation that Passes knowingly courted content creators for the purpose of posting inappropriate material is completely and categorically false,” a Passes spokesperson told TechCrunch in a statement. “We cannot state this position more clearly. To the extent that there was any wrongdoing here, it lies with plaintiff’s talent manager, Alec Celestin.”
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Celestine did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment.
Rosenblum alleges that Celestine, a former brand and community director for fellow creator platform FanFix, groomed her when she was 17 and directed her to take explicit photos and videos of her. Ms. Rosenblum claims that in the days leading up to her birthday in September, Celestine approached her with the idea for an 18th birthday marketing campaign to promote the explicit images she claims she produced while underage.
Rosenblum further alleges that Guo personally intervened to override security measures within the pass and flagged the content as CSAM. A Pass spokesperson denied the allegations.
Rosenblum’s lawsuit names Celestine as an “agent” working with Pass, but the company told TechCrunch that Celestine is “a former social media contractor who has made every effort to disguise his relationship with the company.”
Celestine has appeared in Instagram posts with Guo, including photos celebrating milestones in the path’s development.
Celestine is also involved with Paz in a lawsuit from January 2024 in which Celestine’s former employer, Fanfix, accused Celestine of sharing trade secrets with Paz. At the time, Guo denied the allegations.
“Passes is a no-nudity platform,” the company told TechCrunch. “The allegation that Pass knowingly facilitated the distribution of sexually explicit images days before the creator’s 18th birthday is defamatory and moot.”
The company isn’t marketed as a rival to OnlyFans, and works with mainstream celebrities like NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, NCAA gymnast Olivia Dunn, and record producer Kygo.
Passes said in a December blog post that it strictly prohibits explicit content and uses automated content moderation tools as a first line of defense to scan for violating posts. (AI is Guo’s area of expertise, co-founder of unicorn Scale AI). According to Passes, the company employs a trust and safety team to review reported content and determine compliance with company guidelines.
“The plaintiff and her manager, Alec Celestin, ultimately moved to OnlyFans because[Rosenblum’s]content continued to get flagged on our platform,” Pass told TechCrunch.
Passes said the company uses the industry-standard tool Microsoft PhotoDNA to automatically scan all images of CSAM and, similar to common protocols for online platforms, reports CSAM to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). Passes said in a December post that Microsoft PhotoDNA is not flagging instances of CSAM on the platform.
“Ms. Rosenblum looks forward to obtaining justice for herself and victims like her from all defendants,” said Rodney Villazor, the attorney representing Rosenblum. “Each defendant must answer for his actions in court, not on social media.”
