Recently, a ManyVids (MV) member was “outed” as a porn consumer when a relative Googled an old internet username. The member’s MV profile popped up in the results because their MV username is the same.
Rea Teaze shared this specific instance via Twitter. Teaze wrote: “One of my fans brought it to my attention today that after the Social update, their MV Member profile comes up in google search and now it outed them as a porn-fan and they’re embarrassed. Now I feel bad for asking him to create a profile. Didn’t know it would out him.”
Let’s take a closer look at what happened.
One of my fans brought it to my attention today that after the Social update, their MV Member profile comes up in google search and now it outed them as a porn-fan and they're embarrassed. Now I feel bad for asking him to create a profile. Didn't know it would out him.
— Rea Teaze ? (@ReaTeaze) July 13, 2019
How Does Porn Appear in Search Engines?
Porn sites generally want to push their search engine hits toward content creators and videos. That’s where they generate revenue, right? If you Google an MV member username, the MV profile pops up in the results (alongside Twitter and Insta profiles of the same username too, if they exist).
If you Google a Pornhub member username, you don’t get their Pornhub profile, you get a list of videos they’ve commented on — because Pornhub wants people to click on videos. ManyVids is arguably a more community-oriented platform than Pornhub, especially since the introduction of MV Social earlier this year. ManyVids is not a social network though. It’s a porn site, first and foremost, with elements of social media — but the site isn’t responsible for preventing your username from appearing in search engines.
When you Google the username of an adult site member (not a verified model) — if you have SafeSearch disabled — Google will show you a bunch of pages on the site that user has commented on, but the user profile itself is typically deprioritized. With ManyVids members, their individual profile will appear in the results, a small contrast from other sites like xHamster, AmateurPorn, RedTube, XLGirls and Pornhub.
According to MV, the difference is due to the search engines’ own unique algorithms. The MV team is not altering the results. Don’t be surprised if you type a username into Google and it gives you profiles with that name. ManyVids CEO Bella French told YNOTCam that MV would “never manipulate any aspect, big or small, to skew things.”
MV, like all porn sites, is recognized by search engines as adult-oriented and is flagged by SafeSearch filters, so MV will not appear in Google, Bing or Yahoo results when this feature is enabled.
According to MV, MV Social “is designed to increase engagement and visibility for the adult community and serves to create a safe space for sex workers and their supporters to express themselves freely,” without the threat of censorship and deletion for sex workers using platforms like Twitter and Instagram. Twitter usesr pointed out the privacy concerns for MV’s customers. MV Stars should be the focus of the site, and any searches involving the site should be directing traffic to MV Star profiles and vids.
Teaze pointed out that Members initially signed up for a clip site, not the controversial social network they emphasize now. Two million MV Members help make ManyVids such a high-earning, popular clip site. But Members don’t host stores on MV. They don’t benefit from appearing in Google searches, Teaze pointed out in a later tweet. Over 65,000 MV Stars, on the other hand, do.
ManyVids protects your private information, though it’s up to you to decide what to share on your public profile. Just as with other sites like Pornhub, even Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, only information publicly available on your ManyVids profile is searchable in Google, such as your follower/following lists, posts, profile details, video descriptions, comments and reviews. Things like addresses, tax documents and payment and contact information are stored privately and only accessible by you and certain site administrators. When you purchase a store item on MV, your address and contact info may be shared with the seller (for shipping physical items).
There have been no reports of private information, such as legal names and addresses, of users being leaked or otherwise visible.
How Do We Protect Ourselves?
Ultimately, it is up to you to do all you can to keep your private life private. Models: generally, you probably don’t want your legal name attached to your sex worker-persona (aside from legal documents, taxes and payment processing, which is protected by reputable companies you do business with).
Check out this article from Studio20’s Andra Chirnogeanu for more advice on keeping your porn and private lives separate.
This is valuable advice for consumers, too! Sex workers and their customers often choose to maintain a certain level of anonymity, which should be respected. If you don’t want anyone in your vanilla life to discover your online profiles, ones used to buy from and interact with sex workers, then by all means, go by a fake name or use only your first name. If you use Twitter, keep your profile locked if this makes you feel safer, but remember that people who don’t follow you cannot see Tweets from your private account. (And some sex workers choose to block locked accounts.)
Many internet users have the same or similar usernames across different platforms. In the adult community, this is typically a good thing, because it makes it much easier for others to recognize you. If some of your vanilla profiles — let’s say, Twitter, Steam, Google, Flickr, Instagram, Tumblr, Discord and even the old MySpace and AIM profiles you thought everyone forgot about — have the same username, then it might be unwise to use the same name for your Pornhub, ManyVids, XLgirls and Sextpanther profiles.
Any information you share with the public — be it on social media, advertising, your website or with fans — should be vague enough to protect your privacy and keep you safe.
When contacted for insight on this issue, ManyVids said:
Viewers on the internet can rarely keep their online habits private, despite their best efforts. Even browsing in private mode or incognito may prevent the person you’re sharing a home or computer with from discovering your habits, but you can’t hide from Google, which tracks your intimate browsing habits and activities, just as it tracks all your other online actions.
Anyone who does not want their identity to be indexed in an online search engine should use an alias whenever possible. What is appearing in a search is the result of algorithms defined by Google and not ManyVids. How or what results appear are completely beyond our control. We can emphasize that assuming privacy online is a precarious position and anyone who wants to remain hidden should use an alias.
According to Bella French, “The MV Platform was created to provide equal and fair opportunities to all MV Stars alike with the intention that everyone has the same chance for success. I personally, and the team as a whole, would never manipulate any aspect, big or small, to skew things somehow.”
“Hard work, perseverance and fair competition should co-exist to help our community thrive. That is our mantra. There is no room for short-cuts when you are aiming for long-term success,” French added.
Lots of things to consider here!
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Alsanna James is a student, advocate, spoonie, writer, gamer and adult content creator. Half silent oracle, half professional sexpot, you can email her at alsanna@ynotcam.com and find her on Twitter at @AlsannaJames.
Header image screen grab via YNOT and photo by Gratisography.
