What were the contents that forced the Backpage seizure

If you were a user of Backpage you know by know that it is no longer in operation. Since 2018 the federal authorities have seized the website and many of its officials were arrested and accused with many charges involving illegal sex trafficking advertisements.
While Backpage was famous for its adult services section, it was not the only section that it had. In general, it was a classified ads website much like Craigslist. At the beginning of its operation in 2004, it was a platform with moderate traffic. It was in 2010 that CL closed its adult services section and Backpage jumped in to fill the gap that Backpage's traffic multiplied.
As you can understand, even though prostitution is illegal in the biggest part of the United States the demand and supply is there, there is no denying that. This is what probably led Backpage officials to pursue that course of action.
Quickly that platform became a safe haven for sex workers and for people that were willing to pay for sex. For almost 8 years Backpage made serious money by facilitating prostitution ads.
While they were usually concealed and the site itself never admitted that it was providing ads for hookers, everyone knew what was going on. The real problem began when reports of underage sex trafficking begun to show. At this point, federal law enforcement was forced to take action and investigate the matter. The investigation began in 2017 and it took just a few months to come to an end. More than 1000 people associated with illegal prostitution ads were arrested and most of the Backpage official was accused with various charges that had to do with illegally paid sex advertising.
In any case, Backpage was closed for good. This has led to a series of events, such as protests from sex workers about taking away their safe haven. Most of them lost the way to screen their customers carefully and they are forced to go back to the street. This involves much worse working conditions and a bigger amount of risk.
Moreover, many platforms have tried to fill in Backpage's shoes and take advantage of the gap that was created but as of now, none has managed to be a successful successor. Of course, since the demand and supply are there and people are willing to pay for sex, it is only a matter of time before another platform rises up to the task.
In conclusion, we would like to say that if Backpage was facilitating underage sex trafficking ads then it is rightfully shut down as child prostitution is something that should never be tolerated. On the other hand, we believe that any adult that is willing to have sex for money should have the right to do so, in a safe environment that will protect him/her and his/her customers.