Many of you have noticed that Black Throb has gone offline. The message on their site confirms that it is shut down until further notice, with no timeline for return.
This is an important reminder of just how challenging it is to build and sustain a safe, reputable community platform. It is not just about having a good idea or writing strong rules. To truly keep people safe, a platform needs:
1. Technical Foundations
Secure hosting, backups, and redundancy so sites don’t disappear overnight.
Scalable architecture to handle growth without breaking.
Encryption and privacy safeguards to protect user data and communication.
2. Business Infrastructure
Clear funding sources so operations aren’t dependent on one person’s time or pocket.
Sustainable revenue models that do not exploit users.
Legal compliance across multiple jurisdictions (copyright, online safety, sex work, data protection, etc.).
3. Functional Policies and Practices
Clear, defined, and enforceable community guidelines.
Transparency around enforcement, including reports and appeals.
Dedicated moderators who are trained and resourced, not just volunteers or a one-person team.
4. Security and Trust Resources
Tools for reporting, blocking, and appeals that actually work.
Anti-doxing, anti-impersonation, and anti-retaliation protections.
Advisory boards or community input to ensure policies reflect lived experience, especially for marginalized users.
A lot of people are now asking me and others to “just build a new site.” I need to be clear: the investment required is significant, both financially and in time, staffing, and legal compliance. Running a platform like this cannot be a side project.
And just because many people are only now hearing about Black Throb does not mean it “just popped up.” The site had been live for years before it started circulating more widely during the #WhatTheFet protest.
To help prepare for what may come next, we will be collecting resumes from people with skills in tech, moderation, community management, security, and policy. This way, if another site owner needs resources, if Black Throb reopens and seeks help, or if I decide to spearhead a project of my own, we have a pool of talent ready to go.
👉 Submit Your Information Here
Let what we just experienced serve as a reminder to us too: when it comes to fetish platforms, potential partners, or anything else we step into, we need to do our research before we go all in. Protect your energy, your content, and your privacy until you know a space is truly built to safeguard them.
Bottom line: Black Throb’s shutdown is disappointing, but not surprising. Building safe digital spaces is hard work, and it requires more than vision. Until we see platforms with both community heart and operational capacity, the best protection we have is caution, vetting, and informed decision-making.
Capt. Chaos
Do we know what precipitated the shutdown? I never went to the site.