History/Adult Content FAQ

This is a compilation of frequently asked questions about the new Adult Content changes for Second Life. Questions are marked "No Answer", or "Partial Answer" if not fully answered.

When Does this All Happen?

These changes are not all at once. It requires first creating new software, and then distributing it to the majority of SL users, moving a number of region's worth of parcels with adult content, and informing enough people so that enforcement of the new rules is feasible. This entire process will have taken at least 6 months from initial announcement in March 2009.

How does this affect the average Second Life resident?

If your account not verified, you will not be able to fully use search, or visit adult regions on the grid. Even if you are verified, you must still activate the adult settings in preferences and search to access adult regions. If you shop at, work at, or rent a place that moves to Zindra, or the estate owner changes the region to Adult, you will need to verify to continue visiting it.

How does this affect Landowners on Mainland and Estates?

The new definitions for PG, Mature, and Adult land are eventually supposed to be followed by everyone. In particular, some things that used to be allowed on Mature land, will not be any more. If you fall in that category, you would have to change those things, or move to Adult land.

If you are on estate land, and you have adult material, your choices are to get the estate owner to change the rating for the region, or to move. Conversely, if you are not verified, and the estate owner changes the rating to adult, you will not be able to enter the region any more, even if you own or rent a parcel there.

How does this affect businesses and public venues?

Publicly promoted adult content is supposed to be located on adult rated land, and certain adult words are filtered from search below the adult settings. If you have adult content or advertise it, you may need to move part or all of your business or venue.

Search also now has the ability to turn off results from PG, Mature, or Adult land. This will change how you use search to get people to find you.

Linden Lab has made many statements that strongly connect search listings (title and description) that use adult words to requiring being on adult land. There are many other ways to communicate and control access within SL. Which of those will make your place "public", and thus fall under the new rules, is less clear.

What does "Advertises or Publicly Promotes" Mean? (No Answer)

The maturity ratings (KB6010) distinguish between publicly promoted adult content, which is required to be on adult regions, and implicitly non-public adult content, such as private homes with a sex bed, which could be located on Mature land. Second life provides a rich variety of ways to communicate and restrict or allow access to land. Much land is "mixed use" as far as the maturity of the content and how public or private it is. Therefore more clarification of this phrase is desired.

What if it's Not 100% Adult?

There are several ways a parcel can be not entirely adult but advertised in search:

(1) Mixed content in a public area, for example a store on mature land that sells a variety of items, some of which are adult, but those are not advertised explicitly.

(2) Mixed public and private use of a parcel, for example a store at ground level which only sells non-adult items, and a skybox above, which is residential, and contains sex furniture. The landing point is at the store only.

(3) Mixed use by time. For example a parcel that is normally a private residence, but occasionally advertises an adult event.

What is Promotion?

It is pretty clear from the Knowledge Base that advertising in the SL search database using adult words clearly requires being on adult land. But there are lots of other ways to communicate in SL, ranging from a private invitation to one person, to inviting everyone in a group, to renting signs in various locations around the grid, which fall short of a Search listing.

Who gets a "free" move to Zindra? (Partial Answer)

If your business relies on adult content, and would be negatively impacted, you can submit a ticket to get granted land on the Zindra continent. While the land will be set to purchase at no direct cost (ie "free"), there are significant costs to moving in time to pick up and re-build your location, adapt to different terrain and parcel shape, inform customers, redo landmarks, and search entries, rebuild traffic from scratch, loss of unused time on classified ads, etc.

If it is an adult venue, but not a business, it is not clear if it would be granted land in the initial move.

Is simple nudity without sex adult?

Depending on context, not necessarily. A nude beach without sexual activity can be rated mature. Skin vendors require showing a nude skin to display the product, but are not sexual. Neither is nude art automatically sexual, so either of those are acceptable on mature land. Strip clubs that do not use adult words in search or host sex furniture can be mature.

What words are filtered in Search?

A full list of filtered words is not provided in order to prevent "gaming" of search. Nonetheless, anyone can test individual words on the Second Life Search page, or by using in-world search. Seven words are known to be filtered always, no matter what settings are used, and an additional 65 are known to be filtered when the adult checkbox is not active.

Are Child Avatars Allowed on Adult regions?

Yes, but the existing rules prohibiting sexual ageplay or proximity to sexual content still apply. Since Adult regions by design will often contain sexual content, child avatars should be cautious about visiting those areas.

Why Didn't Verification Work for Me?

There are several possible problems here. The first is that you successfully are verified, but did not yet activate the adult settings in preferences (general tab, rating) and search (each tab you want to see adult results for). The second is you provided payment info, and it did not show on your profile (submit a support ticket to fix this). Third is Age Verification failed because the database they are comparing your information to is incorrect, or the entry fields are incorrect for your country (Send photocopy of your ID info to Linden Labs)