Why takedown-resistant hosts only take crypto

People assume crypto-only hosting is an ideological choice, or a way to dodge tax. Usually it is neither. It is the removal of a specific and well-understood point of failure.

The processor is a second regulator

Card networks and payment processors enforce their own content rules, which are stricter than the law in most countries and are not published in any useful detail. A rights holder or a pressure group that cannot get a host suspended can very often get its merchant account terminated instead, and that ends the business just as effectively. It has happened repeatedly across adult content, file-sharing, firearms and political publishing.

• A merchant account can be terminated at will, usually with no meaningful appeal.
• Chargebacks let a customer reverse a payment months later, and enough of them end the account regardless of merit.
• Rolling reserves let the processor hold a percentage of revenue for six months or more.
• A processor holds a complete identity record for every customer, which becomes the softest target for anyone seeking one.

What crypto removes

A settled on-chain payment cannot be reversed, held in reserve or terminated by an intermediary, because there is no intermediary in the position to do any of it. The account also needs no identity record, so a subpoena aimed at the payment layer arrives at a ledger denominated in coins rather than a file with your name on it.

The cost to you, honestly

There is one. No chargeback means a genuine dispute has to be settled with us directly rather than by your bank, and a payment sent to a wrong address is gone. That is a real trade, and it is why we run a prepaid balance that never expires and is never frozen — if you cannot reverse a payment, the least we owe you is that the money stays usable and stays yours.

Published by NoDMCAVPS, an offshore host that files automated DMCA notices instead of forwarding them. What we still remove is listed in the acceptable use policy.