Considering the recent action taken against games with NSFW content on Steam and itch.io, it’s high time we really talked about the threat of payment processors being weaponized against free expression online. How We Got HereThe weaponization of payment processors to enact target censorship is not a new tactic. Collective Shout is certainly following the Exodus Cry playbook for censoring adult content online, yet also claims to be a “feminist” organization (where Exodus Cry merely calls itself a Christian one). If you read into the specific types of pornographic content that were being targeted by Collective Shout, it’s quite harrowing. They pressured the payment processors into demanding Steam and itch.io comply with the activists’ demands.