Which regulatory agencies enforce this type of clause?

{'agency': 'FTC', 'reason': 'FTC has authority over unfair competition and data practices that may be implicated in unauthorized commercial data collection from consumer platforms.', 'complaint_url': 'https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/'}

What is the severity of this clause?

ConductAtlas classifies this Prohibition on Automated Access and Scraping clause as high severity. Severity reflects the magnitude of rights affected, the breadth of users impacted, and the degree of discretion the platform retains.

Prohibition on Automated Access and Scraping — Craigslist

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What it is

You are not allowed to use any automated tools — bots, scrapers, scripts — to access or copy Craigslist content, and any third-party software that interacts with Craigslist is also prohibited unless Craigslist has separately licensed it.

Consumer impact (what this means for users)

Using any browser extension, automated search tool, or third-party app that interacts with Craigslist without explicit authorization could expose you to significant financial liability under the liquidated damages provisions.

Cross-platform context

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Why it matters (compliance & risk perspective)

This prohibition, combined with the $3,000/day liquidated damages clause, creates substantial legal and financial risk for any developer, researcher, or business that accesses Craigslist data programmatically.

View original clause language

You agree not to copy/collect CL content via robots, spiders, scripts, scrapers, crawlers, or any automated or manual equivalent (e.g., by hand). Unless licensed by us in a separate written or electronic agreement, you agree not to use or provide software (except our App and general purpose web browsers and email clients) or services that interact or interoperate with CL, e.g. for downloading, uploading, creating/accessing/using an account, posting, flagging, emailing, searching, or mobile use.

Institutional analysis (Compliance & legal intelligence)

(1) REGULATORY FRAMEWORK: This provision implicates the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA, 18 U.S.C. § 1030), which prohibits unauthorized access to computer systems; Craigslist has successfully pursued CFAA claims against scrapers (Craigslist, Inc. v. 3Taps, Inc., N.D. Cal. 2012). The provision also engages the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA, 17 U.S.C. § 1201) regarding circumvention of technical access controls. The Ninth Circuit's hiQ Labs v. LinkedIn decision (9th Cir. 2022) created uncertainty about CFAA liability for scraping publicly available data, potentially limiting Craigslist's CFAA claims in some contexts. (2)

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Applicable agencies

FTC

FTC has authority over unfair competition and data practices that may be implicated in unauthorized commercial data collection from consumer platforms.
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Provision details

Document information

Document

Craigslist Terms of Use

Entity

Craigslist

Document last updated

April 29, 2026

Tracking information

First tracked

April 18, 2026

Last verified

April 18, 2026

Record ID

CA-P-003025

Document ID

CA-D-00287

Evidence Provenance

Source URL

https://www.craigslist.org/about/terms.of.use

Wayback Machine

View archived versions →

SHA-256

80f85263c430b95f91b78125e0dbb2505055453e668ec19eefe4b53b64a4af6b

Verified

✓ Snapshot stored ✓ Change verified

How to Cite

ConductAtlas Policy Archive
Entity: Craigslist | Document: Craigslist Terms of Use | Record: CA-P-003025
Captured: 2026-04-18 11:49:41 UTC | SHA-256: 80f85263c430b95f…
URL: https://conductatlas.com/platform/craigslist/craigslist-terms-of-use/prohibition-on-automated-access-and-scraping/
Accessed: May 2, 2026

Classification

Severity

High

Prohibition on Automated Access and Scraping