united-states internet social-media sanctions
Social network websites limitations based on USA sanctions
<p>I live in a country that has been blacklisted under United States sanction regulation. I've got free membership in DeviantArt.Com (A community website for sharing artworks [Photographs, painting, drawings, writings and etc. Something kind of similar to Instagram] around the world.) After the last USA presidential election, DeviantArt.Com (Abbrv. as D.A.) blocked my country's IPs to access their accounts. To be specific, my account is still there &amp; my membership is not cancelled but I can view website's contents as a guest, only. No sign in/up is allowed &amp; D.A. assistansts, in response to my complaining email, wrote that its due to United States Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control sanction regulations.</p>

<p>I understand what they say but what I do not understand is that why similar websites &amp; networks (e.g. Instagram, Facebook, Google Photos, Flickr, Pinterest and etc.) can give free membership-based services without any sanction limitations but this certain D.A. website cannot do the same? </p>

<p>It probably has to do with the sophistication and risk tolerance of the organization in question.  Larger companies will typically have bigger legal teams that can better identify truly risky behavior.</p>

<p>For example, <a href="https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/Programs/Documents/ukraine_eo4.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Executive Order 13685</a> blocks certain trade with Crimea:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Section 1. (a) The following are prohibited: 
  ... 
  (iii) the
  exportation, reexportation, sale, or supply, directly or indirectly,
  from the United States, or by a United States person, wherever
  located, of any goods, services, or technology to the Crimea region of
  Ukraine;</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Under the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Emergency_Economic_Powers_Act" rel="nofollow noreferrer">International Emergency Economic Powers Act</a>, all it takes is an executive order to do this sort of thing.</p>

<p>There's a list of active sanctions against Iran <a href="https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/Programs/Pages/iran.aspx" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a>.</p>
