The publication eventually led to a long legal battle. An initial application for the magazine to be placed on the index of youth-endangering media was made in 1986 but was initially rejected. After further applications by youth welfare offices, the magazine was finally re-examined in 1992. In 1996, the Federal Department for Media Harmful to Young Persons (Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährdende Schriften, now BPjM) placed Jung & Frei on the index as youth-endangering. Shortly after this decision, the magazine ceased publication in 1997 after about 115 issues. In online forums, the magazine has been described as a "magazine for pedophiles who needed staged photos of naked teenagers as a masturbation aid". There are references to a CD-ROM containing digitized issues of Jung & Frei being sold online, marketed as a "Rare Out-of-Print Nudist-Nudism Magazines on CD-R," which indicates that despite its prohibition, copies still exist in digital collections.
The PDF Exclusive issue of Jung frei Magazine offers several key features that set it apart from regular issues: jung frei magazine pdf exclusive
: Physical paper from the mid-20th century degrades rapidly. Digitization prevents the permanent loss of cultural history. The publication eventually led to a long legal battle