Appeals Policy
Preamble
Copy link to “Preamble”This appeals policy governs how you can challenge a particular decision of ours — the removal of an item of content, a warning, a restriction or ban on your account, a retention of earnings, a refused verification, or the rejection of a report you submitted.
It implements Article 20 DSA (internal complaint handling for moderation decisions), Article 21 DSA (out-of-court dispute settlement), Article 17 DSA (statement of reasons), Article 22(3) GDPR (challenging automated decisions) and, for creators, Articles 4 and 11 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 (P2B). Where Articles 20 and 21 DSA do not bind us as a micro-enterprise (Article 19 DSA), we apply them voluntarily.
It forms part of our terms of service (Terms section 19.1) and supplements the complaints policy (Complaints) and the content moderation policy (Moderation).
1 Which decisions you can challenge
Copy link to “1 Which decisions you can challenge”| Area | Decisions |
|---|---|
| Content | removing or hiding a post, comment, item of media or message; taking public media out of discovery after an SFW review; refusing an upload |
| Account | a warning, a restriction on particular features, a temporary ban, a permanent ban, loss of access to the reporting feature, withdrawal of the “verified” badge |
| Money | retaining or forfeiting earnings, refusing a payout, a deduction because of chargebacks, retaining or withdrawing referral commission, refusing a refund |
| Verification | refusal of age or identity verification after manual review (Age Verification section 6.3), a demand that you verify again |
| Reach | exclusion from trending, search or recommendations as a consequence of a moderation decision |
| Your report | we rejected a report you submitted, or took no measure (Article 20(1) DSA covers the person reporting too) |
| Consent | a decision about the withdrawal or absence of consent from a person depicted (Co-Performers) — open to people without an account as well |
| Impersonation | a decision on a report of impersonation (identity theft) |
Not through this policy: copyright counter-notices, which have a statutory procedure of their own (DMCA); requests for a refund where no decision has been made yet (Complaints); decisions taken on an order from an authority, where the remedy lies against the order and we tell you which authority issued it (Article 9(5) DSA); and simply ending a livestream, or any other step that cannot be undone — though you can challenge the warning behind it.
2 Who can appeal?
Copy link to “2 Who can appeal?”- the user concerned (fan, creator, co-performer)
- the person who reported, where their report was rejected — with or without an account
- a person depicted, or their legal representative, against decisions about their consent — with or without an account
- authorised representatives (lawyers, legal representatives) on proof of authority
3 Time limit
Copy link to “3 Time limit”You can appeal within six months of receiving the statement of reasons. We recommend appealing promptly, so that we can still help effectively. After the six months are up we consider appeals at our discretion, where the delay was not your fault.
While an appeal is running we take no final steps: hidden content is not deleted, retained amounts are neither finally collected nor paid out, and circumvention-protection entries remain provisional. The measure under challenge itself — a ban, say — stays in place until we decide, unless we lift it provisionally.
4 How to appeal
Copy link to “4 How to appeal”| Channel | For whom |
|---|---|
“Account status” in your account (/account-health) → “Appeal” next to the decision |
every signed-in user, including during a temporary ban and an ordinary permanent ban (read access remains) |
| appeals@desioart.com with the subject “Appeal — [case number]” | everyone; required for locked accounts that cannot sign in, for people without an account, and for representatives |
| desioart.com/appeals | people without an account (those who reported, people depicted) |
| Post | 1 Apriliou 52, 7600 Athienou, Larnaca, Cyprus, marked “Appeal — [case number]” |
The case number is in the statement of reasons you received about the decision. Without it, please give us the date, the kind of decision and the username.
5 What your appeal should contain
Copy link to “5 What your appeal should contain”Required: the case number, or an unambiguous description of the decision; and your reasons for thinking it wrong or disproportionate.
Helpful: evidence (screenshots, correspondence, consents, receipts), context we did not have, mitigating circumstances, and a power of attorney where you act for someone else. You can send evidence in at any time until we decide.
One appeal per decision: as a rule we decide on the same decision once. We look at a further appeal only where there are new facts or new evidence (section 8).
6 Our appeals procedure
Copy link to “6 Our appeals procedure”6.1 Acknowledgement
Copy link to “6.1 Acknowledgement”Automatic and immediate, with a case number; appeals made through “Account status” appear there with their status.
6.2 Principles
Copy link to “6.2 Principles”- A human being decides — never an automated system on its own (Article 20(6) DSA, Article 22(3) GDPR).
- Someone other than whoever decided originally examines the appeal with the whole file in front of them: the original reasons, the evidence, your arguments, the review log.
- Four eyes for confirming or lifting a permanent ban, and for retentions from USD 1,000 upwards; while our team is small, an outside reviewer carries out the second review (a law firm or compliance provider, under a duty of confidence, Article 28 GDPR — Moderation section 2.2).
- Careful, open-minded and not arbitrary (Article 20(4) DSA); we hear from you where questions remain, and we take new evidence into account.
- Protected data stays protected: verification data, evidence and third-party data are looked at only so far as necessary, and every access is logged.
- No disadvantage: an appeal never affects your reach, your payouts or your support.
6.3 Deadlines
Copy link to “6.3 Deadlines”| Appeal against | Decision within |
|---|---|
| a temporary ban, a restriction, a payout retention, a refused verification, removal of public media (urgent) | 7 days |
| removing or hiding content, a warning, a rejected report, reach | 14 days |
| a permanent ban, forfeiture of earnings, a consent dispute | 14 days; up to 30 days where a four-eyes or legal review is needed, with an interim response |
Where we cannot keep to a deadline by way of exception, we tell you beforehand, with reasons and a new date.
6.4 The outcome
Copy link to “6.4 The outcome”- Reversed: the measure is withdrawn in full — content restored, warning deleted, account unlocked, reach restored, retained amounts released at once (Creator Earnings section 10.3), the circumvention-protection entry removed, and affected subscriptions reactivated so far as possible.
- Partly reversed or reduced: a permanent ban becomes a temporary one, a warning replaces a restriction, part of a retention is released.
- Upheld: the decision stands, with full reasons.
- The period of the measure: for earnings, subscribers or reach you lost during a ban or restriction we are liable — even where we allow your appeal — only under Terms section 12 and Creator Terms section 13; towards businesses, liability for lost profit is excluded save where we acted intentionally or with gross negligence.
- Where the person who reported appeals: we take the measure after all, or explain why we are not doing so.
6.5 Notice
Copy link to “6.5 Notice”You receive the decision by email and in your account, with full reasons, a note of the evidence examined and what else is open to you (section 7). Where a decision touches child protection or an investigation, the reasons may be kept general (Moderation section 4).
7 What else is open to you after an appeal
Copy link to “7 What else is open to you after an appeal”7.1 Out-of-court dispute settlement (Article 21 DSA)
Copy link to “7.1 Out-of-court dispute settlement (Article 21 DSA)”You can choose a dispute settlement body certified by the Digital Services Coordinator of a member state (the list is at digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu under “DSA out-of-court dispute settlement bodies”; for Germany, the bodies certified by the Bundesnetzagentur). The following applies:
- We take part in good faith and as Article 21 DSA requires (Terms section 15.1), and we give the body the information it needs.
- Where the body decides in your favour we bear all its fees and reimburse your reasonable expenses; where it decides in ours, you bear no fees — unless you plainly acted in bad faith (Article 21(5) DSA).
- The decision is not binding; either side can still go to court.
- The body may refuse a case where the same dispute has already been decided.
7.2 Consent disputes with a person depicted
Copy link to “7.2 Consent disputes with a person depicted”Where a person depicted disputes that their consent was valid and we cannot prove it, we remove the content at once. Where we consider the consent valid and the person still objects, we offer both sides clarification by a neutral third party — a mediator from among the bodies named in Creator Terms section 15 (the P2B panel of the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution, or a mediator registered with the Cypriot Ministry of Justice) — and we bear the cost; the content stays hidden until the matter is settled. We implement the outcome of the mediation, and both sides remain free to go to court.
7.3 Authorities
Copy link to “7.3 Authorities”- The Digital Services Coordinator of the member state you live in (Article 53 DSA; in Germany the Bundesnetzagentur, in Cyprus the Coordinator designated under the Cypriot DSA implementing law)
- The data protection supervisory authority, for appeals against automated decisions or against data processing (Privacy section 9.9)
7.4 The courts
Copy link to “7.4 The courts”Under Terms section 16: consumers in the EU may also sue where they live; creators, as businesses, at the company’s seat so far as that is permissible. Claims for breaches of the DSA can be brought under Article 54 DSA.
8 Protection against misuse of the appeals procedure
Copy link to “8 Protection against misuse of the appeals procedure”We examine every appeal in good faith. Repeated appeals against the same decision without new facts, plainly unfounded appeals in large numbers, and appeals that clearly serve only to delay, we may, after a warning, decline to handle for a reasonable period (Article 23(3) DSA), telling you why. In deciding that, we take into account the number, the proportion and the seriousness of the unfounded appeals, and the intent behind them.
9 Data protection in the appeals procedure
Copy link to “9 Data protection in the appeals procedure”- Appeal files (your submissions, the evidence, the decision, the reviewer’s identifier) are kept for 5 years after the case closes (Privacy section 7.1).
- Evidence you submit is used only for the proceedings, and third-party data within it is treated confidentially.
- Where a criminal matter lies behind a case, files may be passed to the authorities on a lawful order (Moderation section 6).
- Verification data stays in the protected systems; reviewers see only the result.
- Your rights under Privacy section 9 apply without qualification.
10 Transparency
Copy link to “10 Transparency”The number, the outcomes and the average handling time of appeals, and the number of dispute settlement proceedings, appear in our annual transparency report (Moderation section 9.3).
11 Updates
Copy link to “11 Updates”Where a change is substantial we tell you 30 days beforehand (creators at least 15 days, Article 3 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1150). The current version is at legal.desioart.com/appeals.
12 Contact
Copy link to “12 Contact”| Matter | Channel |
|---|---|
| Lodging an appeal | “Account status” in your account · appeals@desioart.com · desioart.com/appeals |
| Appeals for locked accounts that cannot sign in | appeals@desioart.com |
| Consent disputes for people depicted | appeals@desioart.com (subject “Consent”) · ncii@desioart.com for intimate images |
| General complaints | Complaints · complaints@desioart.com |
| Dispute settlement bodies, authorities | legal@desioart.com |
| Data protection | privacy@desioart.com |
Postal address: 1 Apriliou 52, 7600 Athienou, Larnaca, Cyprus