Videos locked as private

At YouTube, we believe in addressing abuse in ways that create real, positive impact while also making the site great for creators and viewers all over the world. One of the ways we try and do this is by prohibiting the use of unrelated or misleading tags.

If your video is identified as violating our policy on misleading metadata, it may be locked as private. When a video is locked as private, it will not be visible to the public. If a viewer has a link to the video, it will appear as unavailable.

How will I be notified of this action?

You’ll receive an email explaining that one of your videos has been locked as private. If you appeal, you will be sent further messaging containing info on how to proceed via email.

What happens to my video when it’s locked as private?

When a video is locked as private, it won't appear on your channel or in search results, and will be invisible to other users. Unlike user-selected private videos, you will not be able to change the video’s state until after you have successfully submitted the video for re-review.

There is no strike applied to your account when this happens. You can fix any issues and submit an appeal to have the video reviewed again directly from your video manager. See below for steps on how to submit an appeal.

How can I fix this?

1. Remove any unrelated or misleading tags from the “Description” and “Tag” sections of your video. Learn more in our article about metadata best practices.
2. Submit the video for review by clicking the Locked as private [Appeal] button in the Video Manager section of your channel. You can only file one appeal per video, so please be sure to review all the information above first.

Once our team reviews the video, we’ll contact you with the next steps.

Where can I find more information on how to fix this issue?

Please check out these best practices or watch this video for help fixing your video’s metadata. Other types of more severe metadata violations, such as those employed by spammers, will still receive a Terms of Use strike and be removed from the platform.

Will my video automatically be made public if my appeal is successful?

No, if your video is successfully reviewed, you will be able to make it public but it will not be made public automatically. Videos stay private until you change the video’s privacy settings. This is in order to make sure you can control the moment your video is made public.

What impact will this have on monetization?

Videos locked as private are not eligible for monetization. Once an appeal is submitted and that video is found to no longer violate our policies, the video can resume monetization.