pleenk
Book a demo
← Blog
pt-brfresende

Germany: when a judge orders an account ban, can your platform stop the user coming back?

Published 13 November 20267 min readBy Pleenk Approve

Picture the scene. A creator finds out that a user is posting faked intimate images of her on your platform. You delete the content and block the account. The next day, the same user is back with a new email address and starts again.

In Germany, this situation could soon end up in front of a judge. On 7 October 2026, the German government adopted a draft "law against digital violence". It lets a victim ask a court to temporarily block the offender's account. During the block, the platform must also stop the offender from opening new accounts, as far as is reasonable.

The short answer: if your service is covered, a ban that relies only on an email address will not hold for long. You need to link a ban to a person, prove the decision and enforce it within the period the judge sets.

What does the German draft law say?

The bill is called the "Gesetz gegen digitale Gewalt", the law against digital violence. It was sent to the Bundesrat, the chamber that represents Germany's federal states, in a document dated 9 October 2026. The Bundesrat has until 20 November 2026 to give its opinion. The Bundestag, the federal parliament, must then vote on the text.

The bill gives victims three tools, all ordered by a judge:

  • Account blocking. The victim can ask the judge to block the offender's known accounts. The block lasts for "an appropriate period", set by the judge.
  • Identifying the offender. Following a court order, the platform must hand over the data it holds. The text lists name, date of birth, address, email, phone number and IP addresses.
  • Preserving evidence. The judge can order the platform to keep this data until the proceedings end.

The bill also creates new criminal offences. It punishes making and sharing sexual deepfakes, meaning fake intimate content generated by computer. The penalty is up to two years in prison. Another offence covers using a fake profile in a real person's name to harm them.

According to the Federal Ministry of Justice, the law could apply from mid-2027 at the earliest. The text may still change during the parliamentary debate.

Is your platform covered?

Account blocking applies to "social networks". The bill defines them by reference to the DSA, the EU Digital Services Act. A social network is an online platform whose main purpose, or an essential function, is communication between users. Content must also be shared or made public.

A creator platform with comments and messaging may fall within this definition. So may a live streaming platform with a public chat. It all depends on how your service actually works, so have your lawyer check this point.

Identifying the offender has a wider scope: all online platforms, some hosting services and group messaging services. The bill sets no user threshold. A small platform can therefore be covered.

The government expects about 810 court-ordered account blocks a year, across all services. That is a small number. But a single order that is poorly enforced can do real damage to your reputation, especially if the victim is one of your creators.

Why an email-based ban will not hold

The key point is the second paragraph of the section on account blocking. If the offender tries to open new accounts, the platform must prevent it. This duty applies where it is technically and economically reasonable.

The explanatory memorandum gives only one concrete example: blocking sign-ups that use a phone number or email address already known. The text does not require platforms to verify users' identity. But think about how this works in practice. A new email address takes a minute to create. A prepaid SIM card costs a few euros.

If the offender comes back during the block, the victim can tell the judge. Your platform will then have to explain what it did to prevent it.

This risk is not new for you. The DSA already requires online platforms to suspend, after a warning, users who frequently post manifestly illegal content. This Article 23 duty does not apply to micro and small companies. Platforms that are covered must describe this policy in their terms of service, with examples. The German law adds a judge, a victim and a deadline, but the question is the same: can the banned user come back?

What a court order will require you to prove

A court-ordered block is handled like a case file, not like a click in your moderation tool. Here are the four questions you must be able to answer.

Which accounts belong to this person? The judge can target all of the offender's known accounts. If a user has three usernames, you need to find them fast. Without a link between accounts, you will miss some.

What exactly is blocked? Under the bill, the blocked user can no longer post, comment or share. They can still read. Your tool must handle this difference, and lift the block when the period ends.

Did you notify the user? The bill requires the user to be told about the proceedings and to be able to respond, even under a pseudonym. If their identity is unknown, the platform notifies them. This often happens through the service's internal messages.

Can you show the block held? Keep the start date, the end date and any blocked attempts to sign up again. This record protects you if the victim goes back to the judge.

What we would do in your place

Link every ban to a person, not an account. Your paid creators and streamers should already have a verified identity. Link the ban to that identity. A new email address is then no longer enough to come back. For an ordinary user, you can also ask for identity verification at the right moment. For example, after a first warning or before lifting a suspension.

Write the procedure now. Decide who receives a court order, who enforces it and how quickly. Prepare a message template to notify the user. A judge in a hurry will not wait for you to reorganise.

Update your terms of service. Describe when you suspend an account, for how long and what it prevents. List sexual deepfakes and identity theft as grounds for a ban.

Explain every decision. The DSA (Article 17) already requires you to give reasons for a suspension to the person concerned. Keep those reasons with the decision. They will be useful before the judge, your PSP (the payment service provider that processes your card payments) or the regulator.

Protect the victim first. If the victim is one of your creators, tell her what you have done. A victim who feels supported stays with you.

Do not centralise data without a reason. The law may ask you for identification data. It does not ask you to store copies of ID documents. Keep only what you need, in line with the GDPR (the EU General Data Protection Regulation).

If an agency or another third party manages accounts on your platform, these rules apply to them too. We explain this in our article on agencies that manage a creator's account. For deepfakes, see our article on consent and AI-generated content.

How Pleenk Approve can help

At the heart of Pleenk is a single digital identity. Every creator, streamer, agency or affiliate is verified with a liveness check: a real person is in front of the camera, not a photo or a deepfake. Pleenk encrypts their identity and stores it in a single wallet. Your platform receives proof, never the ID document. Everything is linked to that wallet: their accounts, their consents, the IBAN that receives their earnings and any bans. A ban is therefore tied to the identity, not the account, and fraudulent re-registrations are blocked. Pleenk is not limited to your creators. For any user, Pleenk can estimate age or verify identity, and create a unique identity for them. You decide whom to ask, and when. Your moderation stays yours: Pleenk connects to your moderation tool and keeps proof of the checks. From Pleenk, you generate your report automatically and share it with your PSP in one click.

Want to know whether your bans would hold up against a court order? Write to us at contact@pleenk.com and we will review your user journey with you.

This article is for information only and does not constitute legal advice. The German draft law may still change before it is adopted. Have your choices checked by your lawyer.

Sources

More articles
11 November 2026 · 7 min read
AI content and deepfakes: the consent the AI Act requires from your adult platform from 2 December
9 November 2026 · 8 min read
Human trafficking and cam studios: what a live streaming platform must check
6 November 2026 · 7 min read
Ofcom is investigating two adult services over non-consensual intimate images: what a PSP should ask its merchants