Amazon · AWS Acceptable Use Policy · View original document ↗

Prohibited Uses - Illegal or Harmful Content

Medium severity Medium confidence Explicitdocumentlanguage Unique · 0 of 325 platforms
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Recent governance activity Amazon recorded 5 documented changes in the last 30 days.
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Document Record

What it is

AWS prohibits using its services for any illegal activity, violence, terrorism, fraud, or harmful content, and also prohibits helping others do these things through AWS.

This analysis describes what Amazon's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology

ConductAtlas Analysis

Why it matters (compliance & governance perspective)

This clause establishes the core scope of prohibited conduct and is the basis on which AWS may take enforcement action, including service suspension, against accounts it determines are engaged in or facilitating these activities.

Interpretive note: Terms such as 'otherwise objectionable' are broad and give AWS substantial discretion in determining what conduct qualifies as a violation, creating interpretive uncertainty for customers.

Consumer impact (what this means for users)

Customers whose use cases are flagged as illegal, harmful, or fraudulent under this clause may have their services suspended or terminated, potentially without advance notice, disrupting access to data and workloads hosted on AWS.

How other platforms handle this

Runway Medium

You may not use Runway's tools to create content that promotes, glorifies, or facilitates acts of terrorism, mass violence, or genocide, or that could be used to provide material support to individuals or organizations engaged in such activities.

Midjourney Medium

Do not generate images for political campaigns or to try to influence the outcome of an election. Do not generate images to spread misinformation or disinformation. Do not generate images to attempt to or to actually deceive or defraud anyone. Do not intentionally mislead recipients of generated ima...

Delta Airlines Medium

All content on this Internet site ("the delta.com website") is owned or controlled by Delta Air Lines and is protected by worldwide copyright laws.

See all platforms with this clause type →

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▸ View Original Clause Language DOCUMENT RECORD
"
You may not use, or facilitate or allow others to use, the Services or AWS Site: in a way that violates any applicable law or regulation; to engage in, promote, facilitate or encourage illegal activity; to threaten, incite, promote, or actively encourage violence, terrorism, other serious harm; or in a manner that is fraudulent, defamatory, obscene, or otherwise objectionable.

— Excerpt from Amazon's AWS Acceptable Use Policy

ConductAtlas Analysis

Institutional analysis (Compliance & governance intelligence)

(1) REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: This provision engages the FTC Act Section 5 regarding unfair or deceptive practices, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, and equivalent EU and member-state laws. In the EU context, the Digital Services Act imposes specific obligations on how platforms handle illegal content and the procedures for removal or suspension. The FTC and State Attorneys General are relevant US enforcement authorities. (2) GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Medium. The breadth of terms such as 'otherwise objectionable' introduces interpretive ambiguity regarding what conduct triggers enforcement. AWS retains discretion to determine what qualifies, which creates compliance uncertainty for customers operating in edge-case content categories. (3) JURISDICTION FLAGS: EU customers are subject to the Digital Services Act, which may require AWS to follow specific procedural steps before acting on illegal content determinations. UK customers operate under the Online Safety Act framework, which has its own content and enforcement obligations. California and other US state AG offices may have jurisdiction over deceptive or fraudulent use cases. (4) CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: B2B procurement teams should assess whether their vendor agreements with AWS include any procedural protections around AUP-based enforcement actions. The broad language of 'facilitate or allow others to use' means customers may bear responsibility for downstream end-user conduct on their AWS-hosted platforms. (5) COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Compliance teams should document how their platform's content or activity categories map to the prohibited uses list. Organizations that allow user-generated content or third-party integrations on AWS infrastructure should assess their own acceptable use policies and moderation procedures to limit exposure under this clause.

Full compliance analysis

Regulatory citations, enforcement risk, and due diligence action items.

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Applicable agencies

  • FTC
    The FTC has jurisdiction over unfair or deceptive practices that may intersect with prohibited conduct categories listed in this provision
    File a complaint →

Applicable regulations

CFAA
United States Federal
DMCA
United States Federal
DSA
European Union

Provision details

Document information
Document
AWS Acceptable Use Policy
Entity
Amazon
Document last updated
May 5, 2026
Tracking information
First tracked
April 27, 2026
Last verified
May 12, 2026
Record ID
CA-P-010905
Document ID
CA-D-00028
Evidence Provenance
Source URL
Wayback Machine
Content hash (SHA-256)
35a0e34b7136e83dd0dca01e14dd192b01d7012211f2617232fe3d1a27218091
Analysis generated
April 27, 2026 10:50 UTC
Methodology
Evidence
✓ Snapshot stored   ✓ Hash verified
Citation Record
Entity: Amazon
Document: AWS Acceptable Use Policy
Record ID: CA-P-010905
Captured: 2026-04-27 10:50:37 UTC
SHA-256: 35a0e34b7136e83d…
URL: https://conductatlas.com/platform/amazon/aws-acceptable-use-policy/prohibited-uses-illegal-or-harmful-content/
Accessed: May 13, 2026
Permanent archival reference. Stable identifier suitable for legal filings, compliance documentation, and research citation.
Classification
Severity
Medium
Categories

Other risks in this policy

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Frequently Asked Questions

What does Amazon's Prohibited Uses - Illegal or Harmful Content clause do?

This clause establishes the core scope of prohibited conduct and is the basis on which AWS may take enforcement action, including service suspension, against accounts it determines are engaged in or facilitating these activities.

How does this clause affect you?

Customers whose use cases are flagged as illegal, harmful, or fraudulent under this clause may have their services suspended or terminated, potentially without advance notice, disrupting access to data and workloads hosted on AWS.

Is ConductAtlas affiliated with Amazon?

No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Amazon.