Etsy users' fury as website bans sales of sex toys, pornography and models showing off their nipples or 'gluteal clefts'

Etsy users have expressed their fury after the website said it will ban the sale of sex toys, pornography and items that when modelled show off female nipples or the cleft between the buttocks.

The new rules issuing the ban will go into place on July 29 which Etsy claimed was due to 'evolving industry standards'.

But sex toy sellers impacted by the policy change have expressed their outrage that their online businesses could be destroyed by the move.

Simply Elegant Glass is one of the affected sellers, its owner Anna (who preferred not to use her surname) said the decision was a 'betrayal' to loyal sellers who had 'helped make Etsy what it is'.

However Etsy claimed the ban was about keeping users safe and reflects industry-wide trends.

Its VP of trust and safety, Alice Wu Paulus wrote: 'We carefully crafted this policy with the goal of continuing to enable creative expression and the spirit of our marketplace, while taking into account evolving industry standards.'

The ban states any adult toys that are 'insertable' or 'designed for genitals to be inserted into them' will be prohibited.

However non-insertable and non-penetrable adult toys and sexual accessories could still be allowed as long as they follow the guidelines on mature content.

Millions of independent businesses use Etsy to sell all manner of goods including ceramics, hand-made jewellery and cards. 

The sex toy ban comes after many countries have been putting pressure on platforms to do more to prevent under-18s from encountering explicit content, and to remove illegal or 'harmful' content from their platforms. 

Online payment processors are also increasingly wary of working with platforms that promote sex based commerce. 

Etsy - which is based in Brooklyn, New York - has now brought its policy into line with most major social media platforms (except Twitter/X).

But Anna, rejected Etsy's concerns, and instead took to Twitter/X where she wrote an open letter: 'Protecting children from adult content is a noble interest and we agree that it should be pursued - no question whatsoever. That's not an honest framing of what you're doing here, though, is it?

'A blanket ban is the lazy solution to the problems of non-compliance and non-enforcement that you, @Etsy, created in the first place. It's a solution that targets buyer retention and that appeases investors and advertisers. It's a bad solution - even when framed around "safety".

'We have been loyal Etsy sellers since 2015, selling artistic, hand-made, one-of-a-kind goods. That's what Etsy was made for, isn't it? This policy change will erase us from Etsy, where we have 5K+ shop followers and a painstakingly-earned 5* review average across 1500+ reviews! 

'We've created a lot of profit for you over the years, Etsy (more on that soon), and despite our best advertising efforts most of our traffic originates from Etsy searches. Everything we've built on your platform will be completely nullified in 30 short days.'

Etsy was originally founded in 2005 and made its debut on the NASDAQ stock exchange in New York in 2015. Its biggest shareholders include financial behemoths including BlackRock and JP Morgan. 

This is not the first time updates to Etsy's policies have sparked a backlash.

In 2015 it changed its policy on selling supernatural items and services.

After eBay banned the sale of magic-related services in 2012, Etsy became one of the most popular places for these types of vendors to make a living. 

Under the site's previous rules, spells and hexes were allowed to be sold as long as they did not guarantee results, and did not fall under the category of 'services'. 

For example, in addition to a psychic reading or spell, the seller had to produce something tangible like a candle or deck of tarot cards to accompany a reading.

But the new guidelines state that 'any metaphysical service that promises or suggests it will effect a physical change (e.g., weight loss) or other outcome (e.g., love, revenge) is not allowed, even if it delivers a tangible item.' 

So many of the love spells and potions that promise good fortune were axed.

But admins in the forums insisted that the sales of oils, incense, crystals and candles for use in spells are still allowed - but they cannot claim magical properties.