YouTube apologizes for falsely banning channels for spam, canceling subscriptions

A misfire of YouTube’s systems led to the accidental banning of YouTube channels impacting numerous creators who were informed their channels were removed for “Spam & Deceptive Practices.” YouTube has now apologized for the problem and says it’s rectifying the situation, but did not comment on the cause of the bans, leading creators to wonder if the company’s automation is to blame.

On X, YouTube acknowledged the problem on Thursday night, saying it was aware of an issue “causing some channels to be incorrectly flagged for spam and removed.” The company said it was looking into this and working to reinstate the channels that were impacted. Later in the evening, YouTube updated again to say that it was still working on the reinstatement and added that other content, like playlists, may still be delayed.

The company has not yet posted another update as of Friday morning so it appears the problem is not fully resolved at this time.

Missing in YouTube’s posts is any explanation as to how something like this could occur or an acknowledgment of the scale of the problem.

However, social media reports from creators indicate the problem is fairly serious and widespread. On YouTube’s X posts, for example, there are hundreds of replies from creators and their fans about channels they want to see restored. Some creators also noted that their files were missing, or complained that they tried to change their settings or reach out to support, but received no assistance. YouTube’s updates on its Help site have hundreds of responses as well, but no further explanation.

While the issue impacting creators is of greater concern, because channel removals affect their livelihood, some YouTube Premium subscribers said they also lost access even though they don’t post videos or haven’t in years. As a result, they no longer had access to their Premium subscription, nor could they stream via YouTube Music.

The issue highlights the problems that can result when multiple services are tied together under one roof — publishing on YouTube, subscribing to Premium, and streaming via YouTube Music and YouTube TV. A false takedown over spam means people were losing access to not only their channels, which they may not have even utilized, but also their paid subscriptions.

YouTube says it’s working on restoring access to subscriptions as well as the removed channels, adding “We are very sorry for this error on our part and we’ll follow up here when it’s done.”

TechCrunch reached out to YouTube for comment on the situation, including the scale and the cause. If YouTube responses beyond its public statements, we’ll update with that information.