Stripe issued an apology after its customer service staff allegedly told customers that the company had banned LGBTQ+ content related purchases.
The company, which provides payment processing software and APIs for businesses of all sizes, has long prohibited the use of its services for the purchase of legal adult content, including pornographic material and other content intended for adult audiences.
Recently, several users reported that Stripe customer service employees stated that the company also banned non-explicit LGBTQ+ content, sparking strong negative reactions among consumers.
A Stripe user posted on social media on Wednesday: “Twice today, when pressured, Stripe operators have said, plainly, that i cannot use stripe for the purchase of LGBTQ content. not just adult content, but explicitly LGBTQ.”
“Same during my call,” another user said. The user went on to say: “The wording I used was “non-explicit, legal, non-adult LGBT content”, and I got back the response that “yes, stripe is blocking this. We’re a private company, we make our own rules about it.” Was hung up on when I asked why.”
On Thursday, Stripe reportedly declared that the information provided by its support team was completely incorrect and clarified that it does not actually ban LGBTQ+ content or products.
“The information given by our support team was totally wrong,” a Stripe spokesperson told the BBC.
“Stripe has no prohibitions on the sale of LGBTQ+ content or goods. We’re looking into this and making sure future inquiries are answered correctly,” the spokesperson added.
Stripe has maintained a long-standing policy of not supporting businesses that sell adult content, even if that content is legal.
Its restricted business list includes adult content and services, sexually explicit material and some adult-themed video games and literature.
Stripe’s policies on adult content have come under renewed scrutiny following pressure from an Australian activist group that has targeted payment processing companies such as Visa, Mastercard, and Stripe, which recently published a letter urging these companies to sever ties with online video game distributors that sell games allegedly dealing with themes such as rape, incest, and child sexual abuse.
