The standard of behavior we expect of YouTube users is set out in our Community Guidelines. If a user posts a video or otherwise behaves on the site contrary to these Guidelines, we will generally remove the offending material, and apply a Community Guidelines warning strike against the account of the poster. These strikes stick with the accounts belonging to that user for six months from the date they are received. If a user receives such a strike they will be notified when they next log-in to their YouTube account. For reference, copies of the notice are also sent to the user's email address and YouTube private message inbox.
The first strike on an account is considered a warning. If an account receives two strikes within a six month period, the ability to post new content to YouTube from that account will be temporarily disabled. If there are no further issues, full privileges will be restored automatically after a period. If an account receives a third Community Guidelines strike within six months (before the first strike has expired) the account will be terminated.
When a user has posting privileges temporarily disabled on one account, for the duration of the suspension that user is also prohibited from posting material to YouTube using any other account. Attempts to circumvent this rule may result in immediate termination without warning of all accounts.
A user whose account has been terminated is prohibited from accessing, possessing or creating any other YouTube accounts.
Serious safety and privacy violations such as threats and harassment may result in immediate termination without prior warning.
In some cases a video may be removed for the safety and privacy of the user who posted the video, due to a third-party privacy complaint, court order or other unintended issues. In these instances, the user will not receive a strike and the account will not be penalized.
How do copyright strikes and community guidelines strikes interact?
YouTube enforces a policy that provides for the termination in appropriate circumstances of subscribers who are repeat infringers. This involves a copyright strike count completely separate from Community Guidelines strikes. Please note that unlike Community Guidelines strikes which expire after six months, copyright strikes do not expire. A copyright strike can only be resolved if the user submits a counter-notification and prevails in that process. Please note that there may be adverse legal consequences to filing a false counter-notification. DISCLAIMER: WE ARE NOT YOUR ATTORNEYS, AND THE INFORMATION WE PRESENT HERE IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE. WE PRESENT THIS INFORMATION FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY.
For more information on our copyright policies, please see here.
Has this always been YouTube's policy?
No, much of this is new. We are currently revamping our policy implementation for greater transparency and a better user experience. We will keep you updated as we make further changes.
Last update: April 9, 2008.