In one sentence: Trace answers “which account was this copy delivered to?” for paid content you marked before sending. It doesn’t block playback, remove links or dispute card payments.

Why this page exists

Search results and AI summaries sometimes describe Trace as something it isn’t: course DRM, an e-book lock, a takedown service, or a tool that leaves you on your own once an account is shown. This page sets out what it actually does, in plain words, so you can compare it with the right things.

It’s an explainer, not a customer story. Real creator stories, shared with permission, are on the case studies page.

Who Trace is for

Built for: creators and agencies who sell paid content on OnlyFans, Fansly, Fanvue or their own site and send it to buyers: PPV, customs, paid DMs, voice notes and mass messages.

Not built for: course or e-book DRM, stopping downloads altogether, removing links from search, filing DMCA notices for you, or chargeback disputes.

The platform keeps payments and identity. Trace never asks for your platform login and never stores buyers’ card or ID details. It knows which account each marked copy was delivered to because you mark the copies in Trace and send them yourself.

How a match works

  1. Every buyer gets their own copy. You upload once. Trace makes a copy for each buyer with its own invisible mark, and you send the copies the way you normally do.
  2. A copy turns up online. Upload the leaked file into Trace, or paste a public link.
  3. Several checks must agree. Trace reads the mark and only shows an account when the readings agree and the match is strong enough. If they don’t, the result is inconclusive and no account is shown. A wrong account is worse than none.

For a mass message, where one file goes to many buyers, a match points to the list version the copy went to, not to one buyer on that list.

What you get after a match

Knowing the account is only useful if the next step is ready. When a match clears, Trace prepares:

  • An evidence pack. A downloadable brief with the finding, the checks, file fingerprints, a custody log and independent timestamps, laid out so a platform or a lawyer can check it quickly.
  • An account notice for the platform. With your OK, CreatorSense emails the notice and brief to the platform so its trust and safety team can review the account.
  • A DMCA notice draft. You review it, sign it and send it. Trace never files or signs takedown notices for you.

Then you decide what to do: stop sending to that account, report it to the platform, and send your takedowns yourself or through the takedown service you already use.

Why marked copies deter leaks

Most paid leaks start with one purchase that gets shared again and again. Marking each copy changes that in three ways:

  • The account that leaked stops getting new drops. Once you know whose copy it was, you can stop sending to that account, so the next drop doesn’t end up in the same place.
  • Fewer fresh leaks to chase. Takedowns still matter for links already online. Fewer accounts leaking usually means fewer new uploads to take down.
  • Buyers know copies are marked. A leak that could be traced back to their own account is much less tempting than one that feels anonymous.

Chargebacks are a separate problem. Trace doesn’t dispute card payments with banks or payment processors; that stays between the platform and its payment provider.

What breaks a match

We publish our own test results, misses included, on the robustness page. In the latest run:

  • Photos: 84 of 84 marked copies traced across 21 attacks, and 84 of 84 unmarked controls showed no account.
  • Video, one copy per buyer: 18 of 19 attacks traced, with no wrong account shown.
  • Mass messages and streamed video: 18 of 19 attacks traced against a list of 1,000 recipients, with no wrong account shown.
  • Voice notes: 6 of 8 attacks traced, with no wrong account shown.
  • WAVES public benchmark: 480 attacked photos and 480 unmarked controls, with no wrong account and no false matches.

The hard case is a phone filming a tilted screen: in our tests it came back inconclusive, so no account was shown. AI regeneration and other removal tools are listed as not tested yet. These are our own results and haven’t been independently verified yet.

Accounts can be shared, sold or hacked, so a match shows the account the copy was delivered to, not who pressed share. The platform holds the identity behind each account.

Common mix-ups

What you might read What’s true
“Trace is DRM” No. Files play normally. Trace shows whose copy leaked after the fact.
“It’s for courses and e-books” No. It’s built for paid creator content sent to buyers: PPV, customs, voice notes and mass messages.
“You’re on your own once an account is shown” No. You get an evidence pack, an account notice for the platform and a DMCA notice draft.
“It removes leaked links” No. Trace doesn’t remove anything. Keep your takedown service, or send notices yourself.
“The evidence pack wins chargebacks” No. It’s for platforms, takedowns and lawyers, not bank disputes.
“It stops all leaks” No. It shows whose copy leaked and makes the next leak less tempting. Nothing stops every leak.