Overview
We understand that having your account deactivated can be frustrating. At OpenAI, we prioritize the safety, integrity, and responsible use of our services. Account deactivations occur when there are violations of our Usage Policies or Terms of Service. This article explains the possible reasons for account deactivations and how you can address them.
Reasons for account deactivation
Your account may have been deactivated for one or more of the following reasons:
1. Violation of Usage Policies
We prohibit certain uses of our services to promote responsible AI usage. Common violations include:
Nudity and sexual content
Child exploitation
Violence and self-harm
Deceptive behavior and scams
Hate, harassment, and spam
Other inappropriate or illegal content
Other intellectual property
For more details, please refer to our Usage Policies.
2. Breach of Terms of Service
Account deactivations can result from activities that violate our Terms of Service, such as:
Circumventing security or access restrictions.
Sharing your account or API keys inappropriately.
Using our services in ways that could cause harm to others or disrupt service integrity.
3. Security concerns or unauthorized access
If we detect suspicious activity suggesting that your account was compromised, we may temporarily suspend it to protect you and prevent misuse. In this case, we recommend you:
4. Repeated violations despite warnings
We provide warnings for certain policy violations to allow users the opportunity to correct their usage. Failure to address these warnings within the specified time may result in a deactivation.
5. Failure to complete identity or age verification
Some users are required to verify their identity or age in order to continue using OpenAI's services. If you don't complete this verification, your account may be deactivated.
If you are asked to complete required age verification, follow the instructions and any deadline shown in ChatGPT.
If your account was deactivated because you missed Italy’s required age-verification deadline, try signing in and select Verify your age on the deactivation screen. You can also restart verification through Stripe. For the complete steps, including which email address to use, see: Recovering an account after a missed age-verification deadline.
Being placed in the ChatGPT for Teens experience does not by itself deactivate your account. For more information, see: Age prediction in ChatGPT.
For more information, see What happens after I submit my ID for verification? and Why am I being asked to verify my identity?
If you can't locate an identity-verification email, contact our support team to have it resent.
Appeal a deactivation
If you believe your account was deactivated in error, please submit your appeal using the link in the email notification you received. This allows us to route your request accurately and review it more efficiently.
If you can't access that email, please file an appeal via our intake form: https://openai.com/form/appeal/.
If you did not receive an email notification but have lost access to your account, please reach out via the Help Center chat for support.
Please include the following details:
User ID and Org ID that you're filing an appeal for
Any relevant context or details regarding your usage.
Date range of suspected compromise, if relevant
Card details if you noticed any unauthorized charges due to unrecognized usage
Date(s) of the charge(s)
Amount(s) of the charge(s)
Last 4 digits of the card charged
Brand of the Card (Visa, Mastercard, etc.)
Name of the issuing bank
Billing Zip Code
Information about steps you've taken to resolve any issues.
Our team will review your request and respond as promptly as possible.
Prevent future deactivations
To avoid future deactivations, we recommend:
Reviewing and adhering to our Usage Policies and Terms of Service.
Using our Moderation endpoint to filter potentially violating content.
Keeping your account credentials and API keys secure.
Contact OpenAI Support
If you still have questions, visit our Help Center to explore resources or connect with our support team. We appreciate your commitment to using OpenAI's services responsibly.