The verification process on adult platforms can be more cumbersome than Know Your Customer (KYC) checks on cryptocurrency exchanges — though added difficulty doesn’t necessarily reflect stronger compliance.
Signing up as a model on OnlyFans or Pornhub isn’t all that different from opening an account on a crypto trading platform. The process often begins with a Google login (or other online accounts, depending on the exchange), followed by the familiar ritual of selfies and ID uploads.
Both adult platforms and crypto exchanges are under mounting scrutiny over how they verify users — one to prevent minors from selling explicit content, the other to stop criminals from laundering money.
To test how those systems work in practice, Cointelegraph attempted to pass identity checks on both types of platforms. The results show that adult sites often frustrate creators with repeated rejections and arbitrary hurdles, while crypto exchanges impose more structured checks tied to financial regulation.
KYC in crypto vs. OnlyFans and Pornhub
On OnlyFans, verification went beyond a standard ID and selfie to include an address, multiple resubmissions and social media handles. The application was denied after the platform claimed the profile image and selfie did not meet its standards, even though they followed the stated conditions. OnlyFans later said the provided social media links were invalid even though they were legitimate.
Cointelegraph refiled the details, but the application was rejected again. When approached for comment, OnlyFans’ media team did not address specific questions. Instead, they referred to the transparency center, which states that the platform invests heavily in technology and moderation teams.
Cointelegraph’s application rejection is not a unique case. OnlyFans creator profiles have a low acceptance rate. In July, the platform received 184,844 creator applications, of which only 35% were approved.
Pornhub also rejected Cointelegraph’s application, citing only “other” as the reason. A second attempt using a passport was later approved, coincidentally after a media inquiry. Pornhub did not respond to a request for comment.
Joshua Chu, an asset recovery lawyer and co-chair of the Hong Kong Web3 Association, also independently conducted these tests. His OnlyFans creator application was similarly rejected.
“I looked into joining as a performer, only to find the verification process significantly more rigorous than expected,” Chu told Cointelegraph. “I ultimately didn’t succeed.”
“During the same period, I’ve opened and verified multiple crypto exchange accounts, including ones not even officially supposed to be operating in Hong Kong, and trading there proved less challenging,” he added.
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Crypto exchanges Coinbase, Bybit and Bitget focused their checks on financial documentation, source of funds and proof of address. Cointelegraph attempted to pass KYC on each of these platforms to measure how their processes compared.
On Coinbase, registration began with a Google login and SMS verification, followed by questions about employment and the expected source of funds. The exchange required proof of address through documents such as a bank statement or utility bill. The test was conducted on Sept. 1, and a bank statement with minimal transactions submitted by Cointelegraph was rejected several times. The application was locked for 24 hours. Cointelegraph returned to the application after the time expired, and a July bank statement was accepted and approved. A small 6-euro deposit was made to Coinbase via its banking partner, Estonia-based LHV Pank, to test the on-ramp.
Bybit redirected European Union users to its licensed subsidiary, where verification was completed through standard ID checks. A video of a tilted passport had to be taken to display its hologram. The process was completed within minutes.
Bitget offered the fastest approval: A simple ID upload and selfie unlocked crypto transfers in about 10 minutes. Additional verification was needed to trade crypto against fiat, requiring phone and email codes and a linked bank card.
Coinbase and Bybit did not respond to Cointelegraph’s request to comment on the story.
Bitget, when asked how the platform’s KYC verification occurs almost instantly, responded by saying it relies on its eKYC service providers and its review team.
“Adult content platforms, on the other hand, often rely on more conservative, sometimes manual or third-party age checks — think uploaded scans, liveness tests or credit card checks,” Hon Ng, Bitget’s chief legal officer, told Cointelegraph.
“It’s not that adult sites are intentionally more rigorous; often, it’s that the requirements themselves are murkier,” Ng said.
“For crypto exchanges, KYC is a well-charted, globally familiar process; for age verification in adult content, the rules are newer, interpreted differently across jurisdictions and tangled in privacy debates.”
How OnlyFans and crypto ended up with stricter verifications
Identity checks were not always strict in either adult platforms or cryptocurrency exchanges. Both industries tightened their processes only after scandals and regulatory pressure made the status quo unsustainable.
Pornhub was forced to overhaul its system in 2020 after a New York Times opinion article revealed underage and non-consensual videos on the site. Visa and Mastercard quickly suspended payment services, while the platform deleted millions of unverified uploads and required all content creators to pass government ID verification.
OnlyFans faced similar scrutiny in 2021 as the platform exploded in popularity during the pandemic. A BBC News investigation found that minors were selling and appearing in explicit videos on the platform. The BBC found cases of minors using fake IDs and social media profiles of relatives to bypass the platform’s restrictions.
In March 2025, UK communications watchdog Ofcom fined OnlyFans’ parent company, Fenix International, 1.05 million British pounds (about $1.4 million) for providing inaccurate information about its age-verification system. The regulator said it had twice requested details in 2022 and 2023 about the platform’s “facial age estimation” tool, which was supposed to block minors.
Crypto exchanges followed a parallel but separate path. For years, platforms such as BitMEX and Binance allowed users to trade with little or no verification, drawing the ire of financial regulators.
Related: FATF’s crypto checklist hints at the next regulatory crackdown
BitMEX first settled with US regulators in 2021, agreeing to pay $100 million due to Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and registration failures. In 2024, the exchange pleaded guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act, and in January 2025, a federal judge imposed another $100-million criminal fine along with probation. KuCoin was a more recent example, pleading guilty in 2025 to operating as an unlicensed money transmitter and agreeing to pay nearly $300 million in penalties for optional and inconsistent KYC.
OnlyFans, Pornhub and crypto learned the hard way
In both industries, identity checks only became stricter after a scandal and enforcement made inaction impossible.
Pornhub and OnlyFans toughened their standards after revelations of underage users and child protection failures. Crypto exchanges did so only after regulators imposed heavy fines and criminal charges for weak AML safeguards.
From 2021, the Financial Action Task Force updated its global guidance to apply AML standards to crypto, meaning exchanges had to adopt KYC rules similar to banks.
“KYC is crucial for identifying and pursuing bad actors; it’s really the foundation of effective asset recovery work. However, in practice, I’ve observed that some exchanges have gaps in their KYC data or fail to properly verify key documents like address proofs,” Chu said.
“With the rise of AI-generated fakes, these weaknesses have become more pronounced. Although there are improvements, crypto KYC standards still lag behind traditional finance in integrity and thoroughness.”
Today, onboarding as a creator on an adult site can involve more hoops than opening an account on a crypto exchange, but that doesn’t mean their systems are more secure or accurate. OnlyFans has not expanded on why Cointelegraph’s application was rejected despite the submission of accurate documentation and social profiles.
Both sectors ultimately share the same trajectory: Systems tightened only after crises exposed their weaknesses, and today’s stricter checks are the product of those lessons learned the hard way.
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