Sex workers said they would lose work or be forced to risk soliciting on the streets as Tumblr introduced curbs on sharing explicit imagery on Monday.
The U.S.-based microblogging site announced the ban two weeks ago, saying it had a responsibility to consider the impact of such content "across different age groups, demographics, cultures, and mindsets."
It had been an online hub for sex workers to advertise services and make contact with clients before the change in policy was announced this month. They said it had deprived them of one of their last mainstream safe havens.