One thing all adult performers know is that they are likely to have their Instagram account suspended, often for arbitrary reasons. One porn star decided to fight back, and she actually won her case!

Colombia’s Constitutional Court has ruled that Meta Platforms Inc. acted unlawfully when it deleted the Instagram account of porn star and adult content creator Esperanza Gómez, saying the move violated her rights to freedom of expression and equality.

The ruling, handed down Friday, found that Meta’s decision to close Gómez’s account of more than five million followers was “arbitrary” and lacked a clear or transparent justification. The court noted that Instagram accounts with similar content remained active, underscoring what it called inconsistent and discriminatory enforcement of Meta’s nudity and sexual content policies.

“Meta illegitimately restricted her freedom of expression by applying its policies inconsistently,” the court said in its opinion.

45-year-old Esperanza Gómez 45 is one of Colombia’s most recognized adult performers and has built a large following online through Instagram and other platforms, including X (formerly Twitter), where she has 2.5 million followers. She told the court that posting images of herself in lingerie was part of her professional work and that the account’s removal harmed her ability to earn income.

Meta argued that Gómez had violated Instagram’s policies on nudity, but the court found the company’s enforcement was opaque and unfair. It also criticized the platform for taking into account her offline work in pornography, a factor not spelled out in its community standards.

Although the court did not order Meta to restore Esperanza Gómez’s deleted account, it directed the company to revise its terms of service and privacy policies in Colombia. Among the requirements:

• Clearer, non-discriminatory rules on nudity and adult content.
• Transparent mechanisms for users to challenge moderation decisions.
• Policies and notifications are available in Spanish on a unified website.
• An electronic channel for judicial notifications within Colombia.

The ruling also urged Meta’s Oversight Board to issue an advisory opinion on the moderation of sexual content, specifically regarding whether offline activities can serve as grounds for enforcement.

This is the first time Colombia’s high court has ruled on the rights of online influencers in relation to content moderation. It comes amid a growing wave of judicial scrutiny in South America over tech companies’ power to regulate speech. In June, Brazil’s Supreme Court held social media platforms directly liable for failing to remove illegal content, leading to fines and temporary account suspensions on X.

In Colombia, the case highlights a legal vacuum: while the country’s penal code prohibits child pornography and exploitation, there is no dedicated law governing sexual content online. As a result, global platforms like Instagram and TikTok often apply their own standards, sometimes clashing with local cultural and legal expectations.

For Esperanza Gómez, the court acknowledged the damage was irreversible, calling the deletion “a consummated fact” since her account could not be restored. However, the ruling leaves the door open for her to seek compensation for lost income.

You can follow Esperanza Gómez on X at @esperanzagomez.