Craigslist · Craigslist Terms of Use · View original document ↗

Unilateral Moderation Discretion with No Liability

Medium severity High confidence Explicitdocumentlanguage Unique · 0 of 325 platforms
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Document Record

What it is

Craigslist can block, delete, suppress, or terminate your account at any time for any reason, and the company says it bears no legal responsibility for those decisions or for failing to moderate at all.

This analysis describes what Craigslist'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)

There is no stated appeal process, notice requirement, or grounds limitation on moderation actions, meaning your access, listings, or account can be removed without explanation and without financial or legal remedy under these terms.

Consumer impact (what this means for users)

Users have no contractual right to notice, explanation, or appeal if Craigslist blocks, removes, or terminates their account, and the company explicitly disclaims any liability for moderation decisions, including decisions not to moderate harmful content.

How other platforms handle this

Google Pay Medium

Google may delay payment processing of suspicious transactions or transactions that may involve fraud, misconduct or violate applicable law, the Terms or other applicable Google policies, as determined at Google's sole and absolute discretion.

ClickUp Medium

We reserve the right, at our sole discretion, to modify or replace these Terms at any time. If a revision is material we will try to provide at least 30 days notice prior to any new terms taking effect. What constitutes a material change will be determined at our sole discretion.

Starbucks Medium

Starbucks reserves the right to modify these Terms at any time. We will post the most current version of these Terms on the Service. If we make material changes, we may notify you by email or by posting a notice on the Service prior to the effective date of the changes. Your continued use of the Ser...

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▸ View Original Clause Language DOCUMENT RECORD
"
You agree we may moderate CL access/use in our sole discretion, e.g., by blocking, filtering, re-categorizing, re-ranking, deleting, delaying, holding, omitting, verifying, or terminating your access/license/account. You agree (1) not to bypass said moderation, (2) we are not liable for moderating or not moderating, and (3) nothing we say or do waives our right to moderate, or not.

— Excerpt from Craigslist's Craigslist Terms of Use

ConductAtlas Analysis

Institutional analysis (Compliance & governance intelligence)

(1) REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: This provision engages Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which provides broad immunity to online platforms for moderation decisions involving third-party content. The clause is consistent with the Section 230 framework and the company's assertion of no liability for moderating or not moderating aligns with that statutory protection. EU users should note that the Digital Services Act (DSA) imposes additional obligations on platforms regarding notice, explanation, and appeal mechanisms for content moderation decisions affecting EU users, which may require the company to provide rights beyond what this clause states for that user population. (2) GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Low for the company from a US legal perspective given Section 230 protection. The governance exposure is higher for EU operations under the DSA, which mandates notice and internal complaint mechanisms for content removal decisions, and where this clause's assertion of no liability for moderation may not fully reflect the company's obligations. (3) JURISDICTION FLAGS: EU/EEA users have enhanced rights under the DSA if Craigslist qualifies as a covered platform, including rights to explanation and appeal for account suspension or content removal. US users operating under Section 230 have limited statutory recourse for moderation decisions. (4) CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Businesses relying on Craigslist for lead generation, recruitment, or sales should treat platform access as inherently revocable and not build operational dependencies on continued access. The absence of a service level agreement or uptime commitment reinforces this. (5) COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Legal teams advising EU-based operations should assess whether Craigslist's moderation disclosures satisfy DSA requirements, including whether users are informed of the reasons for moderation decisions and whether an internal complaint process exists. For US operations, no immediate compliance action is required based on this clause alone.

Full compliance analysis

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

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Applicable agencies

  • FTC
    The FTC may have interest where moderation practices that affect paid users are applied without adequate disclosure or in ways that could constitute unfair trade practices.
    File a complaint →

Provision details

Document information
Document
Craigslist Terms of Use
Entity
Craigslist
Document last updated
May 5, 2026
Tracking information
First tracked
April 18, 2026
Last verified
May 11, 2026
Record ID
CA-P-010066
Document ID
CA-D-00287
Evidence Provenance
Source URL
Wayback Machine
Content hash (SHA-256)
80f85263c430b95f91b78125e0dbb2505055453e668ec19eefe4b53b64a4af6b
Analysis generated
April 18, 2026 11:49 UTC
Methodology
Evidence
✓ Snapshot stored   ✓ Hash verified
Citation Record
Entity: Craigslist
Document: Craigslist Terms of Use
Record ID: CA-P-010066
Captured: 2026-04-18 11:49:41 UTC
SHA-256: 80f85263c430b95f…
URL: https://conductatlas.com/platform/craigslist/craigslist-terms-of-use/unilateral-moderation-discretion-with-no-liability/
Accessed: May 13, 2026
Permanent archival reference. Stable identifier suitable for legal filings, compliance documentation, and research citation.
Classification
Severity
Medium
Categories

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Frequently Asked Questions

What does Craigslist's Unilateral Moderation Discretion with No Liability clause do?

There is no stated appeal process, notice requirement, or grounds limitation on moderation actions, meaning your access, listings, or account can be removed without explanation and without financial or legal remedy under these terms.

How does this clause affect you?

Users have no contractual right to notice, explanation, or appeal if Craigslist blocks, removes, or terminates their account, and the company explicitly disclaims any liability for moderation decisions, including decisions not to moderate harmful content.

Is ConductAtlas affiliated with Craigslist?

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