Thread: HS starts seizing web sites

The investigative arm of the Homeland Security Department appears to be shutting down websites that facilitate copyright infringement.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has seized dozens of domain names over the past few days, according to TorrentFreak.

ICE appears to be targeting sites that help Internet users download copyrighted music, as well as sites that sell bootleg goods, such as fake designer handbags.

The sites are replaced with a note from the government: "This domain named has been seized by ICE, Homeland Security Investigations."

For instance, borntrade.com, 51607.com, and amoyhy.com have each been seized.

One of the site owners told TorrentFreak that his site was shut down without any notice or warning.

The effort comes as Congress considers the Combatting Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act (COICA). Critics, including Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) say it is too heavy-handed. He has vowed to put a formal hold on the bill.

http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valle ... 2#comments

Ok
So this is very very dangerous

This week we will need our org websites , What a great time to grab domain names.


They could easily shut us down simply by stating someone posted a "copyright" story. without permission

What I want to know is how can they do this ? What happened to due process?

I've checked out a bit more around the web on this

It appears now the TSA can grope, fondle and feel up anyone they want , Now it appears the HS dept can shut down any website and grab domain names at will without court orders.

Now its going to get ugly

HS alleges criminal activity by the websites , But where is the proof , the court orders , the due process ?

It appears they don't need no stinkin court orders now

Let us hope in January some of this will be changed.........Ok PRAY!

Steve Gibson and Michelle have been busy.

Originally Posted by Justthefacts

.

ICE appears to be targeting sites that help Internet users download copyrighted music, as well as sites that sell bootleg goods, such as fake designer handbags.

No doubt ICE has more than they can handle getting all of these illegal aliens out of this country. Why is their time being wasted taking web domains?

Lawyers Suck!
Righthaven and Michelle Obama hard at work.

http://www.alipac.us/ftopicp-1110317.html

The 19 Senators Who Voted To Censor The Internet
from the free-speech-isn't-free dept

This is hardly a surprise but, this morning (as previously announced), the lame duck Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously voted to move forward with censoring the internet via the COICA bill -- despite a bunch of law professors explaining to them how this law is a clear violation of the First Amendment. What's really amazing is that many of the same Senators have been speaking out against internet censorship in other countries, yet they happily vote to approve it here because it's seen as a way to make many of their largest campaign contributors happy. There's very little chance that the bill will actually get passed by the end of the term but, in the meantime, we figured it might be useful to highlight the 19 Senators who voted to censor the internet this morning:

* Patrick J. Leahy (D) -- Vermont
* Herb Kohl (D)-- Wisconsin
* Jeff Sessions (R)-- Alabama
* Dianne Feinstein (D)-- California
* Orrin G. Hatch (R)-- Utah
* Russ Feingold (R)-- Wisconsin
* Chuck Grassley (R)-- Iowa
* Arlen Specter (D)-- Pennsylvania
* Jon Kyl (R)-- Arizona
* Chuck Schumer (D)-- New York
* Lindsey Graham (R)-- South Carolina
* Dick Durbin -- Illinois
* John Cornyn (R)-- Texas
* Benjamin L. Cardin (D)-- Maryland
* Tom Coburn (R)-- Oklahoma
* Sheldon Whitehouse (D)-- Rhode Island
* Amy Klobuchar (D)-- Minnesota
* Al Franken (D)-- Minnesota
* Chris Coons (D)-- Delaware

This should be a list of shame. You would think that our own elected officials would understand the First Amendment but, apparently, they have no problem turning the US into one of the small list of authoritarian countries that censors internet content it does not like (in this case, content some of its largest campaign contributors do not like). We already have laws in place to deal with infringing content, so don't buy the excuse that this law is about stopping infringement. This law takes down entire websites based on the government's say-so. First Amendment protections make clear that if you are going to stop any specific speech, it has to be extremely specific speech. This law has no such restrictions. It's really quite unfortunate that these 19 US Senators are the first American politicians to publicly vote in favor of censoring speech in America.

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/201011 ... rnet.shtml


No person shall be… deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

And yet this seizure of websites today by the DHS is doing precisely that — depriving people of property without due process of law.

The U.S. federal government, as we have increasingly seen through the actions of the TSA, DEA and DHS, does not recognize nor honor the Bill of Rights. Nor does it believe the U.S. Constitution has any authority whatsoever. The upshot of this is that all Americans citizens are now living under a system of government tyranny, where government agents may molest you at the airports or seize your website if they don’t like what you’re saying online.

I'm saddened that Sessions would put his name on this

Also Grassly

Thats not normal for these 2

Originally Posted by Justthefacts

I'm saddened that Sessions would put his name on this

Also Grassly

Thats not normal for these 2

Looks like we have quite a few more traitors in Washington that need to be run out of office in 2012.