Reddit just banned up-and-coming subreddit /r/GirlsGoneBitcoin, a site that allowed a sort of “sugar daddy” approach to the world of virtual prostitution. Girls would post occasionally salacious photos of themselves (okay, more than occasionally) and Redditors would “help” them out with their personal financial needs via bitcoin — an untrackable form of digital currency that is all the rage with the hacker market. Of course, considering that /r/GuysGoneBitcoin, an identical site featuring guys doing the whoring is still alive and well, one would think Reddit is either operating on a double standard or that something more is afoot.

It turns out it wasn’t the sex that got GGB shuttered, but rather the money. /r/GirlsGoneBitcoin’s moderators, the folks that were in charge of running the subReddit, are bound, like all of Reddit’s moderators, to a “no money” clause. Essentially, moderators aren’t allowed to use their positions of granted power on Reddit to make outside income. The mods on /r/GirlsGoneBitcoin violated this by allowing for advertising on the sideboards that would result in income for clicks. The moderators were receiving a kickback for each time someone accessed an outside site through one of the clickable links. Or in the case of moderator GirlFawkesy who had her entire account deleted, she had a link posted that would take redditors to her personal blog. She’s since returned on GirlFawkesy2, but her entire previous karmatic reddit presence on Reddit has been wiped out. Acknowledging that they’d “screwed up,” GirlFawkesy2 is just hoping the governing body of Reddit will let GirlsGoneBitcoin back in the game to do it right. In the meantime, might I suggest the virtually identical subreddit /r/spacedicks (Editor warning: Do not go to /r/spacedicks).

Interestingly, just because Reddit didn’t ban /r/GirlsGoneBitcoin for sexual reasons, it doesn’t mean they couldn’t. Reddit’s terms of service specifically states:

“You further agree not to use any sexually suggestive language or to provide to or post on or through the Website any graphics, text, photographs, images, video, audio or other material that is sexually suggestive or appeals to a prurient interest.”

With that bizarre little proviso, technically, many of their better subreddits are in danger of being banned at any time. Hopefully, Reddit is smart enough not to cut their own throat.

Here are some other articles about Reddit sites that went the way of the dodo:

Reddit Ban on Racist Subreddit Doesn’t Stop Group From Resurfacing

Internet Perverts Be Warned: Tumblr Blog Predditors Is Back In Business