At Pinterest, our mission is to bring everyone the inspiration to create a life they love, and it’s our guiding light in drafting and enforcing our content policies. 

Not everything on the internet is inspiring, so we have guardrails for what’s acceptable on Pinterest and what isn’t allowed. Our moderation practices are always evolving to keep up with new behaviors and trends and to create a more positive corner of the internet for the people on our platform. We continue to invest heavily in measures like machine learning technology to fight policy-violating content on Pinterest and to work with outside experts and organizations to inform our policies and content moderation practices.

We started publishing a biannual transparency report in 2013, and began expanding it with Q4 2020 to include more information on the actions we take to uphold our Community guidelines. In this transparency report, you’ll find information on our efforts to keep our platform safe and inspiring, such as the number of Pin and account deactivations. It also includes insight into the volume of information and deactivation requests we received from law enforcement and government entities. The report covers the second half of 2022, from July through December 2022, and encompasses more than 400 distinct data points.

Pinterest’s industry-leading policies and practices foster inclusivity, safety and a more positive online experience. From decisions like prohibiting harmful misinformation and all political campaign ads to offering tools for mental health support, Pinterest is at the forefront of its peers. We want to advance the industry on these issues so that—together—we can create a more positive internet.

We’ve continued to expand our reporting to provide greater insight into our efforts. In our latest report, we’ve introduced a separate transparency report category for our longstanding Violent Actors policy. 

Pinterest isn’t a place for violent content, groups or individuals. We limit the distribution of or remove content and accounts that encourage, praise, promote, or provide aid to dangerous actors or groups and their activities. This includes:

We work with industry, government and security experts to help us identify these groups. For example, since 2019, Pinterest has been a member of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT), a non-governmental organization designed to prevent terrorists and violent extremists from exploiting digital platforms.

We’re committed to providing greater transparency into how we keep Pinterest safe and positive, and we'll continue to iterate on this report going forward.

We continue to invest in our policies, products and partnerships to support the safety and wellbeing of our community. Here are just some of the key updates we made in the second half of 2022.

We make industry-leading choices and policy decisions to create a safe, inspiring environment where everyone can find and save ideas to create a life they love. From prohibiting political ads to removing election-related misinformation, we’re focused on fostering the positive and inspirational ideas that bring people to Pinterest every day. In 2022, we took further steps to strengthen our commitment to not only tackling false and misleading content that could interfere with civic engagement but also sharing reliable information on where and how to vote.

Creators are at the forefront of making content that inspires people on Pinterest. In the fall of 2022, we announced a first-of-its-kind global partnership with Headspace, which offers a range of tools for managing stress, increasing positivity, improving sleep and so much more. The partnership invited hundreds of thousands of eligible creators to receive a free 6-month subscription to Headspace across 20 countries. We believe that creating content online should feel exciting, not exhausting. Creators deserve online spaces that truly prioritize their wellbeing. We’re proud of this new Headspace partnership as we continue on our journey to build a globally inclusive platform.

Pinterest’s Community guidelines are designed to support our mission of inspiration. They govern what we do and don't allow on Pinterest, and all users must abide by them. 

We have additional guidelines for merchants and advertisers to set clear expectations about what is and is not acceptable for product Pins and advertisements. These guidelines include especially high standards that are for the safety of all audiences who use Pinterest. We believe you can't feel inspired if you don't first feel safe.

To help us cultivate a safe and inspired community, we develop and enforce content policies that help ensure our platform is a positive place where people can find real-life ideas for what to try next, cook next, wear next or do next. We work hard to identify and deactivate harmful content from our site, and our content policies and moderation practices are always evolving to keep up with new behaviors and trends and to create a more positive corner of the internet for users. 

We may block, limit the distribution of or deactivate content and the accounts, individuals and groups that create or spread that content, based on how much harm the content poses. In the event that a user believes a deactivation was in error, Pinterest provides options to appeal the deactivation, where appropriate.

Every day, millions of people all over the world come to Pinterest to create, discover and save new ideas that are shared in Pins. To understand how we approach content moderation, it’s helpful to differentiate between two types of Pins: organic Pins and ads. Our Community guidelines apply to both.

Organic Pins include all Pins created and saved on Pinterest that are not promoted as ads. For example, this could include merchants’ product Pins, which aren’t always ads, and may appear organically to people who are searching for products on Pinterest. We have additional requirements for merchants and their product Pins, such as that the Pin image and description must accurately represent the product. All types of organic Pins are included in our transparency reports.

Ads are Pins that businesses pay to promote. We have additional policies for advertisers that hold ads and advertisers to even higher standards. Ad policies are enforced differently than organic content, and are not included in our transparency reports.

Much of the content on Pinterest has been saved repeatedly, meaning that the same image may appear in multiple Pins. So when it comes to reporting actions we take on organic Pins under our policies, we include the number of Pins deactivated as well as the number of distinct images deactivated to provide greater insight into our moderation practices for this type of content.

We report boards and accounts deactivated separately. Boards are where you save, collect, and organize your Pins. To avoid double-counting deactivations, our count of distinct images and Pins deactivated does not include those on boards or from user accounts that were deactivated.

We deactivate policy-violating Pins through automated tools, manual review and a hybrid approach that combines elements of both.

Automated deactivations. Our automated tools use a combination of signals to identify and take action against potentially violating content. Our machine learning models assign scores to each image added to our platform. Using those scores, our automated tools can then apply the same enforcement decision to other Pins containing the same images.

Manual deactivations. We manually deactivate Pins through our human review process. Pins deactivated through this process may include those identified internally and those reported to us by third parties. It also includes the Pins that are reviewed and deactivated by one of our team members after a user report.

Hybrid deactivations. Hybrid deactivations include those where a human determines that a Pin violates policy, and automated systems help expand that decision to enforce against machine-identified matching Pins. Depending on the volume of matching Pins, a hybrid deactivation may result in a number of Pins deactivated or none at all.

The mechanisms used to address different potential policy violations may vary based on the state of available technology, the volume of violative content and other factors such as the complexity of evaluation. We continue to iterate and evolve our tools and expect ongoing improvements going forward.

Deactivations for a policy category may not add up to 100% due to rounding.

People often ask, how many users saw a Pin before it was deactivated? In most cases, the answer is: not a lot.

For example, 89% of Pins that we deactivated for dangerous goods and activities in Q4 2022 were never seen by users in this reporting period—even with hundreds of millions of people visiting Pinterest per month.

Reach is one of our key indicators of user experience. To calculate this metric, we start by looking at each policy-violating Pin deactivated in a reporting period. Then we count the number of unique users that saw each of those Pins during the reporting period for at least 1 second before it was deactivated. Reach for a policy category may not add up to 100% due to rounding.

Users can report Pins they think violate our policies by clicking on the three small dots on any Pin and hitting “Report Pin.” Once we confirm that an item violates our Community guidelines and take appropriate action, we consider the report an actioned user report.

The total number of actioned user reports is another key indicator of user experience on Pinterest. So is the number of reporters: fewer than 0.02% of monthly active users reported a Pin that resulted in a Pin deactivation in Q3 2022.

When users find Pins they like or want to come back to, they can save them to boards that they’ve created. Over time, our users have created billions of boards. 

When a board is deactivated for violating policy, all the Pins on that board are also deactivated. Similarly, when we deactivate an entire account, that user’s boards are also deactivated. To avoid double-counting deactivations, our count of boards deactivated does not include those from user accounts that were deactivated.

Think of “accounts” on Pinterest as “profiles” or, most often, individual users. If someone saves Pins and creates boards, that content becomes associated with their account – be it an individual user account or an account for a business, advertiser, merchant or creator. Boards and Pins can be private, shared with a limited number of other accounts, or visible to the public.

Any account, regardless of privacy settings, may be deactivated for violating our policies. When an account is deactivated, all of its Pins and boards are also deactivated. That means that if you search for them or click on an old link to their profile, that profile won’t show up anymore. Their Pins won’t appear anywhere on Pinterest. And the deactivated user won’t be able to access their own Pins or boards, either.

If people believe their accounts have been deactivated by mistake, they can appeal to try to have their accounts reinstated. We review appeal requests and grant the appeal if we determine we made a mistake, or in some cases to give people another chance to abide by our Community guidelines.

We also process appeals for deactivated Pins and boards and expect to include that data in reports in the future.

Our reporting on Community guidelines enforcement in this transparency report covers the second half of 2022, from July to December 2022. We’ve split that time into two reporting periods: Q3 and Q4. 

Q3 covers the third quarter of the year, from July through September, while Q4 covers the fourth quarter of the year, from October through December. Sometimes we also refer to Q1 (January to March) or Q2 (April to June) when we’re talking about quarter-over-quarter trends.

Pinterest isn’t a place for pornography. We take action against content that violates our adult content policy and do not deliver results for searches determined to violate this policy. We do our best to differentiate between pornography and other content that could involve some nudity. For example, you can save content about sexual health, breastfeeding, mastectomies, etc.

Recent trends

We deactivated fewer Pins for violating this policy in Q3 2022 than in Q4 2022. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q3, 98% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period.

Reach* of Pins deactivated for adult content

* See our methodology section above for details on how we calculate reach.

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 896,950 distinct images, which comprised 26,077,118 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 90% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 84,129 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 49,608 boards and 7,811 accounts. We received 2,049 account appeals and reinstated 1,290 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 958,673 distinct images, which comprised 43,518,977 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 97% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 122,375 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 48,633 boards and 4,864 accounts for violating this policy. We received 1,539 account appeals and reinstated 730 accounts.

We prohibit adult sexual services on Pinterest. Adult sexual services may involve sexual exploitation or commercial sex work, such as escort services, sex cams, or sex- or nudity-for-money services.

Recent trends

We deactivated more Pins for violating our adult sexual services policy in Q3 2022 than in Q4 2022. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q3, 98% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period.

Reach of Pins deactivated for adult sexual services

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 22,433 distinct images, which comprised 212,171 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 93% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 229 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 164 boards and 157 accounts. We received 4 account appeals and reinstated 1 account.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 6,801 distinct images, which comprised 105,667 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 90% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 116 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 65 boards and 121 accounts for violating this policy. We received 21 account appeals and reinstated 2 accounts.

Pinterest does not tolerate child sexual exploitation (CSE) of any kind on our platform. That means we enforce a strict, zero-tolerance policy for any content—including imagery, video, or text— or accounts that might exploit or endanger minors. Detecting and removing this type of content is of the utmost importance, and we will continue to invest heavily in this area. 

Pinterest’s Child Safety policy prohibits not just illegal child sexual abuse material (CSAM), but goes a step further to prohibit any content that contributes to the sexualization of minors. For example, we prohibit the intentional misuse of content depicting minors engaging in non-sexualized activities, like modeling clothing or participating in athletics. Also, we do not tolerate content that suggests the sexualization of minors in the form of cartoons or anime. 

We proactively identify CSE images and videos by leveraging our own internal tools and shared industry resources such as PhotoDNA, which uses a shared industry hash database of known CSAM, and CSAI Match to identify video content. We also work closely with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) to combat this type of activity, and report content violations ​​as required under the law. From July to December 2022, our team of specialists was responsible for 27,995 CyberTipline reports to NCMEC.

A note on what we’re reporting and why

CSE is one of the most serious harms addressed by Trust and Safety teams at Pinterest and across the internet. Because of this sensitivity, it deserves extra consideration as we decide how to present information in this report. After consulting with industry experts, Pinterest ultimately chose to include all of the same metrics for CSE that we include for our other content policies, including reach and actioned user reports. These types of metrics are our indicators for how policy-violating content impacts the experience of users on the site. However, we want to be very clear: By sharing reach and actioned user reports for CSE content, we are not implying in any way that harm to children is somehow lessened if fewer people see it. The content is violative and wrong, no matter how many people see it. We share the data only to be transparent in our efforts to remove CSE from our platform. 

We also count all deactivations for CSE, no matter what other actions may have already been taken against the Pin, board or user. For example, if a Pin has been automatically deactivated—meaning no one on the platform can see it—for violating our Spam policy but we later learn that it contains material that violates our CSE policy, the Pin is counted in both our Spam and CSE deactivation numbers. Even though that Pin had not been visible or accessible on Pinterest, we still need to take appropriate action, like making a report to NCMEC if we determine that the image is illegal CSAM. We’ve included those deactivations in our reporting on CSE to provide more accurate insight into these violations. It’s also important to note that higher rates of account reinstatement can be found in this area because our policy is to first err on the side of deactivation when child safety is at issue, and to address appeals as appropriate.

While we work hard to find and remove this type of content, there is always more work to do—and we are committed to doing it.

Reach of Pins deactivated for child sexual exploitation (CSE)

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 10,772 distinct images, which comprised 687,825 Pins, for violating our CSE policy. Of these, we determined that 2,987 distinct images, which comprised 7,318 Pins, were illegal CSAM, and we reported them to NCMEC. Of the total Pins deactivated this quarter for CSE, 90% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 2% manually and 98% with hybrid tools. We actioned 2,513 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 633 boards and 21,033 accounts. We received 3,896 account appeals and reinstated 2,053 accounts. 

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 12,733 distinct images, which comprised 1,716,192 Pins, for violating our CSE policy. Of these, we determined that 5,292 distinct images, which comprised 24,288 Pins, were illegal CSAM, and we reported them to NCMEC. Of the total Pins deactivated this quarter for CSE, 96% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period. We deactivated 1% manually and 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 4,940 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 1,108 boards and 33,228 accounts for violating this policy. We received 5,731 account appeals and reinstated 2,686 accounts.

Our civic misinformation policy is one of several policies in our Community guidelines that prohibit misinformation and disinformation on Pinterest. This policy prohibits false or misleading content on Pinterest that impedes an election’s integrity or an individual's or group's civic participation, including registering to vote, voting and being counted in a census.

Recent trends

Fighting misinformation is complex and always evolving. Content enforcement numbers may change quarter-to-quarter depending on real-world events, such as the Brazilian presidential election and the US midterm elections in Q4 2022. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q4 2022, 98% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period.

Reach of Pins deactivated for civic misinformation

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 1,940 distinct images, which comprised 3,778 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 94% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 86% of Pins manually and 14% with hybrid tools. We actioned 192 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 111 boards and 0 accounts. We received 2 account appeals and reinstated 0 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 3,361 distinct images, which comprised 5,488 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 98% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 88% of Pins manually and 12% with hybrid tools. We actioned 159 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 252 boards and 5 accounts for violating this policy. We received 5 account appeals and reinstated 2 accounts.

In April 2022, Pinterest launched a new climate misinformation policy to keep false and misleading claims around climate change off the platform. As part of our Community guidelines that prohibit misinformation and disinformation, our climate misinformation policy prohibits content that denies the existence or impacts of climate change and false or misleading content about natural disasters and extreme weather events.

Our climate misinformation policy is yet another step in Pinterest’s journey to combat misinformation and create a safe space online. This policy made Pinterest the first major digital platform to have clearly defined guidelines against false or misleading climate change information, including conspiracy theories, across content and ads. We work with climate experts, including the Climate Disinformation Coalition and the Conscious Advertising Network, to help inform our policy and enforcement practices based on common misinformation themes they’re seeing across platforms.

Recent trends

We determined that one of the distinct images deactivated in Q4 2022, and the more than 32,000 Pins deactivated as machine-identified matches, were incorrectly deactivated, and we reinstated that content after identifying the error. Of the Pins that we believe were correctly deactivated in Q4, 81% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period.

We've included those false positives in the Q4 enforcement data, but we excluded them from the reach metric for this policy in an effort to provide more accurate insight into the number of users who saw a Pin that actually violates this policy before the Pin was deactivated.

Reach of Pins deactivated for climate misinformation

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 164 distinct images, which comprised 517 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 87% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 33% manually and 67% with hybrid tools. We actioned 169 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 19 boards and 0 accounts for violating this policy. We received 0 account appeals and reinstated 0 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 241 distinct images for violating this policy, which comprised 33,040 Pins and included the more than 32,000 Pins that were later identified as false positives. Of the Pins that we believe were correctly deactivated, 81% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 254 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 54 boards and 5 accounts for violating this policy. We received 3 account appeals and reinstated 3 accounts.

Our conspiracy theories policy is one of several policies in our Community guidelines that prohibit misinformation and disinformation on Pinterest. Conspiracy theories include content that turns or encourages turning individuals, groups of people, places or organizations into targets of harassment or physical violence, such as hate-based conspiracy theories and misinformation about mass atrocities.

Recent trends

We deactivated more Pins for violating this policy in Q3 2022 than in Q4 2022. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q4, 96% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period.

Reach of Pins deactivated for conspiracy theories

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 2,222 distinct images, which comprised 6,870 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 95% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 45% of Pins manually and 55% with hybrid tools. We actioned 320 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 210 boards and 5 accounts. We received 5 account appeals and reinstated 2 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 1,581 distinct images, which comprised 5,988 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 94% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 41% manually and 59% with hybrid tools. We actioned 387 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 502 boards and 10 accounts for violating this policy. We received 14 account appeals and reinstated 4 accounts.

Pinterest isn’t a place for trading or selling dangerous goods or engaging in dangerous activities. Dangerous goods are products or substances that might cause harm when used, altered or manufactured irresponsibly. Dangerous activities—including displaying or encouraging dangerous activities—are also not welcome on Pinterest. This category includes content that facilitates human trafficking, compulsory labor and other forms of illegal commercial exploitation such as trading in organs. In addition, this category includes content that facilitates the sale of wild animals or protected and endangered wildlife and other types of animal exploitation. Pinterest partners with the World Wildlife Fund and its Coalition to End Wildlife Trafficking Online to tackle wildlife trafficking and get feedback on our approaches.

Recent trends

We deactivated more Pins for violating this policy in Q3 2022 than in Q4 2022. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q4, more than 99% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period.

Reach of Pins deactivated for dangerous goods and activities

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 10,029 distinct images, which comprised 2,086,885 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 85% were never seen by users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% manually, fewer than 1% automatically and 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 2,458 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 642 boards and 207 accounts. We received 14 account appeals and reinstated 2 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 10,283 distinct images, which comprised 1,657,667 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, more than 99% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% of Pins manually, fewer than 1% automatically and 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 2,398 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 501 boards and 531 accounts for violating this policy. We received 21 account appeals and reinstated 1 account.

We prohibit graphic violence and threats on Pinterest. This includes most content that shows the use of violence, threats and language that glorifies violence.

Recent trends

We deactivated more Pins quarter-over-quarter due to distinct images with a higher volume of matching Pins. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q4, 99% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period. 

Reach of Pins deactivated for graphic violence and threats

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 8,888 distinct images, which comprised 224,161 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 96% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 5% of Pins manually and 95% with hybrid tools. We actioned 5,335 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 638 boards and 36 accounts. We received 13 account appeals and reinstated 4 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 11,383 distinct images, which comprised 839,175 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 98% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 2% of Pins manually and 98% with hybrid tools. We actioned 8,690 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 732 boards and 41 accounts for violating this policy. We received 24 account appeals and reinstated 8 accounts.

Pinterest is not a place for harassment and criticism, and we prohibit content that insults, hurts or antagonizes individuals or groups of people. This includes manipulated images intended to degrade or shame, shaming people for their bodies or assumed sexual or romantic history, sexual remarks about people’s bodies, solicitations or offers of sexual acts, and mocking someone for experiencing sadness, grief, loss or outrage.

Recent trends

We deactivated fewer Pins for violating this policy in Q3 2022 than in Q4 2022. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q4, more than 99% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period.

Reach of Pins deactivated for harassment and criticism

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 5,544 distinct images, which comprised 136,806 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 95% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 5% of Pins manually and 95% with hybrid tools. We actioned 5,869 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 919 boards and 169 accounts. We received 50 account appeals and reinstated 37 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 4,287 distinct images, which comprised 618,977 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 98% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% of Pins manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 4,968 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 931 boards and 236 accounts for violating this policy. We received 93 account appeals and reinstated 57 accounts.

We prohibit hateful content and the people and groups that promote hateful activities on Pinterest. Hateful activities include slurs and negative stereotypes, caricatures and generalizations, as well as support for hate groups and people promoting hateful activities.

We believe all people deserve a safe space to cultivate their interests and seek inspiration—regardless of their actual or perceived race, color, caste, ethnicity, immigration status, national origin, religion or faith, sex or gender identity, sexual orientation, disability or medical condition.

Recent trends

We determined that two of the distinct images deactivated in Q4 2022, and the more than 100,000 Pins deactivated as machine-identified matches, were incorrectly deactivated. We reinstated that content after identifying the error. Of the Pins that we believe were correctly deactivated in Q4, 91% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period.

We've included those false positives in the Q4 enforcement data, but we excluded them from the reach metric for this policy in an effort to provide more accurate insight into the number of users who saw a Pin that actually violates this policy before the Pin was deactivated.

Reach of Pins deactivated for hateful activities

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 7,044 distinct images, which comprised 80,731 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 89% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 11% of Pins manually and 89% with hybrid tools. We actioned 4,987 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 680 boards and 78 accounts. We received 23 account appeals and reinstated 6 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 9,872 distinct images for violating this policy, which comprised 196,464 Pins and included the more than 100,000 Pins that were later identified as false positives. Of the Pins that we believe were correctly deactivated, 87% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 7% of Pins manually and 93% with hybrid tools. We actioned 11,180 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 838 boards and 95 accounts for violating this policy. We received 40 account appeals and reinstated 12 accounts.

Our medical misinformation policy is one of several policies in our Community guidelines that prohibit misinformation and disinformation on Pinterest. This policy prohibits medically unsupported health claims that risk a user’s health or wider public health and safety, including the promotion of false cures, anti-vaccination advice, or misinformation about public health or safety emergencies. We rely on information from nationally and internationally recognized institutions, including the Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization, to help us determine if content violates these guidelines. 

Recent trends

We deactivated more Pins for violating this policy in Q3 2022 than in Q4 2022. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q3, more than 97% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period.

Reach of Pins deactivated for medical misinformation

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 4,995 distinct images, which comprised 42,455 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 95% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 14% of Pins automatically, 9% manually and 77% with hybrid tools. We actioned 385 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 386 boards and 2 accounts. We received 2 account appeals and reinstated 1 account.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 2,686 distinct images, which comprised 19,188 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 91% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 22% of Pins automatically, 7% manually and 72% with hybrid tools. We actioned 219 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 155 boards and 6 accounts for violating this policy. We received 5 account appeals and reinstated 3 accounts.

Combating self-harm is a priority for us as we strive to ensure Pinterest plays a positive role in people’s lives. Content that displays, rationalizes or encourages suicide, self-injury, eating disorders or substance abuse isn’t welcome on our platform. This includes self-harm instructions, sensitive imagery and suicidal thinking and quotes. We also block search terms related to self-harm.

Our ongoing partnership with Samaritans, an organization dedicated to reducing suicide that provides listening and support to people and communities in times of need, continues to help us tackle suicide & self-harm content and make Pinterest a safer place for everyone. Partnerships like this help us elevate expert research and development within the field of mental health so that more people in need can find support, no matter what app or website they use. We’ve also chosen to partner with third-party content safety services to independently test our moderation efforts in this and other important areas.

Recent trends

We continued investing in work to improve content moderation for self-harm content. As a result, we saw a large increase in Pins deactivated throughout Q3 and Q4. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q3, more than 99% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period. 

Reach of Pins deactivated for self-injury and harmful behavior

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 57,731 distinct images, which comprised 17,052,987 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 98% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 4% of Pins automatically, fewer than 1% manually and 96% with hybrid tools. We actioned 2,099 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 13,529 boards and 197 accounts. We received 31 account appeals and reinstated 12 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 88,596 distinct images, which comprised 15,166,148 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 95% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 3% of Pins automatically, fewer than 1% of Pins manually and 97% with hybrid tools. We actioned 3,071 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 6,535 boards and 1,777 accounts for violating this policy. We received 199 account appeals and reinstated 44 accounts.

We want the inspiration and ideas on Pinterest to be high-quality and useful, so we deactivate spam when we find it. The goal of spammers is to make money, and the best way to do this is to spam at scale. It’s a numbers game: one million spam emails are much more effective than one spam email. The same kinds of spamming efforts can happen on any content distribution platform, including Pinterest. Platforms’ interactions with spammers are generally both adversarial and iterative with users who intentionally try to evade the system and continually update their techniques. 

Recent trends

At Pinterest, we use the latest in machine learning technology to build automated models that swiftly detect and act against spam of all kinds. We iterate on these models at regular intervals by adding new data and exploring new technical breakthroughs to either maintain or improve their performance over time to effectively address spam. Given the adversarial, iterative nature of fighting spam, content enforcement numbers may vary greatly quarter-to-quarter..

We deactivated fewer Pins for violating this policy in Q3 2022 than in Q4 2022. Of the Pins we deactivated in Q4, more than 99% were seen by 100 or fewer users in this reporting period.

Reach of Pins deactivated for spam

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 47,099 distinct images, which comprised 114,450 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 96% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated 100% of Pins automatically. We also deactivated 2,248,045 accounts for violating this policy. We received 134,405 account appeals and reinstated 109,381 accounts.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 689,081 distinct images, which comprised 739,176 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 82% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% of Pins using hybrid tools and more than 99% automatically. We also deactivated 2,108,189 accounts for violating this policy. We received 76,049 account appeals and reinstated 56,137 accounts.

Pinterest isn’t a place for violent content, groups or individuals. We limit the distribution of or remove content and accounts that encourage, praise, promote or provide aid to dangerous actors or groups and their activities. This includes extremists, terrorist organizations, and gangs and other criminal organizations. We work with industry, government and security experts to help us identify these groups. For example, Pinterest since 2019 has been a member of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT), a non-governmental organization designed to prevent terrorists and violent extremists from exploiting digital platforms. 

We’ve introduced separate reporting on Violent Actors in this report but taking action against this type of content is not new. Previously data about content actioned under this policy was included in other related policies.

Reach of Pins deactivated for violent actors

In Q3 2022, we deactivated 817 distinct images, which comprised 88,345 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 94% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% of Pins manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 458 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 362 boards and 42 accounts. We received 1 account appeal and reinstated 1 account.

In Q4 2022, we deactivated 4,120 distinct images, which comprised 257,149 Pins, for violating this policy. Of these Pins, 91% were seen by fewer than 10 users in this reporting period. We deactivated fewer than 1% of Pins manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We actioned 1526 user reports that resulted in a Pin deactivated for violating this policy. We also deactivated 697 boards and 95 accounts for violating this policy. We received 8 account appeals and reinstated 3 accounts.

Pinterest respects the intellectual property rights of others and we expect people on Pinterest to do the same. It’s our policy to disable content in response to complete and valid claims of infringement and, in appropriate circumstances, to deactivate the accounts of people who repeatedly infringe or are repeatedly charged with infringing copyrights or other intellectual property rights. Our policies with respect to copyright and trademark issues are set out in our Copyright policy and Trademark policy, respectively.

Pinterest provides multiple mechanisms for IP rights holders to submit notices alleging intellectual property infringement. The first can be found in-product right next to the content at issue. Rights holders or their authorized representatives can report Pins they believe infringe their intellectual property rights by clicking on the three small dots on any Pin and selecting “Report Pin,” where they will find a link to report for IP infringement. We also provide standalone, publicly-available reporting forms and dedicated email addresses, as well as our physical address, for submitting intellectual property notices, all of which can be easily located on our Policy site. 

Rights holders have the option to identify one piece of content in each report, or many. We assess each piece of content identified in a submission and when we determine a report is complete and valid, we will promptly process the report and action the content as appropriate. If we need more information about the reporting party or about any content identified, we engage with the person or entity that submitted that notice to give them the opportunity to provide that information. If at any point they are able to submit a complete and valid notice alleging intellectual property infringement, Pinterest will process the notice and deactivate the content identified.

We may consider a notice to be invalid and decline to deactivate content identified when appropriate, such as when the notice:

 

Given the complex nature of intellectual property cases, we’ve included a number of metrics to provide greater insight into the steps that we take to assess intellectual property submissions and engage with the people or entities who submit them.

When a user’s content is deactivated as the result of an intellectual property notice, we send them an email notification that includes information on how to appeal our actions if they wish to do so. We evaluate appeals, which may be in the form of a counter-notice under the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), and remedy the situation if we determine that there was an actionable appeal. As we do with intellectual property notices, we engage with the person or entity who submitted the appeal to get more information if necessary. If at any point they are able to submit a complete and valid appeal, Pinterest will take appropriate action to remedy the situation.

Pinterest has always been a place for content creators, brands and publishers worldwide to feature their content and build value. Many creators upload their own content or encourage users to do so using buttons on their websites designed to facilitate saving to Pinterest, and welcome the exposure and user traffic generated when users save images. We work hard to give creators control over their content, including by designating which websites should be linked to and receive traffic from saved images, using features like our “No Pin” code if they wish to restrict saving from their websites, or claiming content on Pinterest through our Content Claiming Portal. 

In cases where rights holders do not want their content to appear on Pinterest, we offer several mechanisms for content removal. Copyright owners and those authorized to act on their behalf can report alleged copyright infringements through our copyright reporting mechanisms including our in-product reporting option, our reporting form or via email to copyright [at] pinterest.com (copyright[at]pinterest[dot]com). Once we’ve assessed a copyright notice, we take appropriate action, which may include removing the reported content from Pinterest. We also offer the Content Claiming Portal, a tool launched in 2021 that enables rights holders to claim their content and decide if and how it appears on Pinterest. When we take action based on a copyright notice or information gathered in the Content Claiming Portal, we notify affected users and provide information on how to appeal our actions if they wish to do so.

Copyright and other forms of intellectual property present unique content moderation challenges. While moderators can often identify content that violates our other policies, like those prohibiting adult content or threats, simply by looking at the content, this is not the case for copyright. Identifying copyright infringement generally requires additional knowledge about the content’s origin, legal status, ownership, licensing or other information that is not readily apparent—such as whether the owner authorized use by another party through agreements that Pinterest is not privy to. Because of this, rightsholders alone are in a position to know whether a particular use is or is not authorized. The notification process is a means for rights holders to provide this necessary information to Pinterest. Copyright is also unique because the proper response to infringement is not always to deactivate the content. Some rights holders may choose to deactivate content, while others prefer to keep their content on Pinterest but correct its attribution or add a link to their website. 

For these reasons, both our moderation process and the data reported here are not always directly comparable to our other sections on Community guidelines enforcement. That’s why, for example, we’ve added metrics such as the number of notices we processed based on the initial submission and the number of times we sought more information, and omitted our metric showing the reach of deactivated Pins. We’re committed to providing greater transparency into how we enforce intellectual property protections on Pinterest, and we'll continue to iterate on this report going forward.

In Q3 2022, we received 24,513 submissions through our copyright reporting mechanisms. Of these submissions, 1,663 were determined to be spam and we discarded them. We determined that another 227 were requests unrelated to intellectual property and forwarded to the appropriate team at Pinterest. We found 12,299 to be complete upon submission, and we processed all content identified in each notice. We sought information for an additional 6,253 submissions which we determined to be incomplete and ultimately processed 1,216 of those submissions. In total, we processed 13,515 notices and deactivated 37,835 distinct images, which comprised 11,137,479 Pins, under our copyright policies. We deactivated fewer than 1% of Pins manually and more than 99% with hybrid tools. We deactivated 372 accounts for violating our policy against repeat infringers. We received 1,293 appeals regarding content deactivations, found 1,006 to be complete and facially valid, and took appropriate action. 

We also received 2,911 requests through the Content Claiming Portal in Q3 2022. We processed 2,755 requests, which included deactivating 7,939 distinct images, comprising 78,976 Pins. We received 15 appeals for content deactivated in this manner, found 4 to be complete and facially valid, and took appropriate action.

In Q4 2022, we received 18,627 submissions through our copyright reporting mechanisms. Of these submissions, 1,376 were determined to be spam and we discarded them. We determined that another 172 were requests unrelated to intellectual property and forwarded to the appropriate team at Pinterest. We found 11,293 to be complete upon submission, and we processed all content identified in each notice. We sought information for an additional 4,661 submissions which we determined to be incomplete and ultimately processed 731 of those submissions. In total, we processed 12,025 notices and deactivated 76,745 distinct images, which comprised 17,108,646 Pins, under our copyright policies. We deactivated 1% of Pins manually and 99% with hybrid tools. We deactivated 432 accounts for violating our policy against repeat infringers. We received 731 appeals regarding content deactivations, found 520 to be complete and facially valid, and took appropriate action. 

We also received 4,635 requests through the Content Claiming Portal in Q4 2022. We processed 3,698 requests, which included deactivating 8,475 distinct images, comprising 222,246 Pins. We received 40 appeals for content deactivated in this manner, found 26 to be complete and facially valid, and took appropriate action.

Pinterest respects the trademark rights of others. Trademark owners can contact us through our trademark reporting mechanisms, such as our in-product reporting option, the trademark complaint form or by emailing us at trademark [at] pinterest.com (trademark[at]pinterest[dot]com), if they have concerns that content on Pinterest infringes their trademark rights. We review submissions we receive and take appropriate action, including removal of the content at issue from Pinterest.

As with copyright, both our moderation process and the data reported here are not always directly comparable to our other Community guidelines enforcement. That’s why, for example, we’ve added metrics such as the number of notices we processed based on the initial submission and the number of times we sought more information, and omitted our metric showing the reach of deactivated Pins. 

In Q3 2022, we received 4,666 submissions through our trademark reporting mechanisms. Of these submissions, 693 were determined to be spam and we discarded them. We determined that another 2 were requests unrelated to intellectual property and forwarded to the appropriate team at Pinterest. We found 1,277 to be complete upon submission, and we processed all content identified in each notice. We sought information for an additional 2,511 submissions which we determined to be incomplete and ultimately processed 106 of those submissions. In total, we processed 1,383 notices and deactivated 26,688 distinct images, which comprised 35,301 Pins, under our trademark policies. We deactivated 100% of Pins manually. We deactivated 339 boards and 279 accounts under our trademark and related policies. We received 4 appeals, but found 0 to be complete and facially valid.

In Q4 2022, we received 5,364 submissions through our trademark reporting mechanisms. Of these submissions, 621 were determined to be spam and we discarded them. We determined that another 8 were requests unrelated to intellectual property and forwarded to the appropriate team at Pinterest. We found 1,951 to be complete upon submission, and we processed all content identified in each notice. We sought information for an additional 2,504 submissions which we determined to be incomplete and ultimately processed 142 of those submissions. In total, we processed 2,093 notices and deactivated 29,807 distinct images, which comprised 38,677 Pins, under our trademark and related policies. We deactivated 100% of Pins manually. We deactivated 107 boards and 282 accounts under our trademark and related policies. We received 6 appeals, but found 0 to be complete and facially valid.

This section provides insight into the volume of information and deactivation requests received from law enforcement and government entities in the second half of 2022, from July through December 2022. For more information on how we respond to requests for account information, refer to our Law enforcement guidelines.

Pinterest receives legal requests from law enforcement and government entities for Pinterest account information. We diligently review each request, and only produce data for those that meet the requirements of the law and our policies. Our policy is to notify users of government requests for their information prior to disclosing, except in specific circumstances, such as where we are prohibited by law or in emergency situations.

United States 

* Law enforcement requests such as wiretap orders, pen registers, trap and trace, and emergency disclosure requests.

** The account owner was notified before production. This does not include situations where account owners were notified at a later date following the disclosure of their account information once the legal prohibition period had lapsed.

 

International

* Law enforcement requests such as emergency disclosure requests and requests issued pursuant to local law.

** The account owner was notified before production. This does not include situations where account owners were notified at a later date following the disclosure of their account information once the legal prohibition period had lapsed.

National security requests*

* Any national security letters and orders issued under the US Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act for user information.

We sometimes receive requests from government entities to deactivate content on Pinterest that may be illegal in their country and/or a violation of our Community guidelines. 

We review the requests to determine if the content identified violates our Community guidelines or local law. Our teams take action on violations, ranging from deactivating the content globally to restricting access to the content within the relevant country if it violates local law but does not violate our policies. 

Pinterest received a total of 15,284 content removal requests from government entities from July through December 2022, all of them from outside the U.S. We deactivated content for 8,873 of those requests for violating our Community guidelines and restricted content on an additional 2,977 requests. Content for 3,430 requests was inactive by the time it was reviewed in response to the government removal request. This can happen when, for instance, the content was deactivated in response to a user report prior to Pinterest receiving the government removal request.

* Content violated our Community guidelines and was removed from the platform.

** Content was reported by a government entity but did not violate our Community guidelines and was restricted from appearing only in the country where the request originated, based on local law.

*** Content was no longer available on the platform by the time it was reviewed in response to the government removal request.

Creating the most positive space online doesn't happen by accident: It happens through proactive policy and product decisions. We have industry-leading positions on content safety that are informed by inputs and advice from outside experts, civil society and government. We also invest heavily in measures like machine learning technology to maintain a safe and positive space for people on the internet. We’re proud of what we’re doing to keep Pinterest safe and to move the broader industry forward. 

Let’s create a safer, more inspired internet, together.