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Feds Return Mistakenly Seized Domain
bs0d3 writes "Just over a year ago, Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) seized dozens of domain names as part of Operation in Our Sites. Among them was DaJaz1.com, a site from which Special Agent Andrew Reynolds said he'd downloaded pirated music. But there was a problem. Persistent reports suggested that the songs had been legally provided to the site by record labels for the specific purposes of distribution to fans, a point later raised by Senator Ron Wyden. One 'leak' even came from a boss at a major music label. Today, a year later, their domain was returned. The reason was because there was no probable cause and the site had never actually broken any laws or warranted a seizure. They are back in business and are displaying an anti-censorship, anti-PROTECT IP, and anti-SOPA banner on their website."
U.S. seizing domains of other nationals is bad as it is, but then they don't even research if there's actually anything illegal hosted? They just see mp3 downloads and assume it's copyright infringement and because it isn't big name site, just steal the domain without even contacting the owner. Is their tactic to make domain seizing look better by abusing things so much that the actual seizing part feels "light" compared to their other abuses?
If the content bothers U.S. so much, why don't they just create national firewall like China does? Why do they step on other nationals rights and speech?
Sounds like a clear case of conspiring to violate the civil rights of a citizen.
The design, wording and overall presentation of that banner is brilliant. The site appears to have been (hopefully briefly) slashdotted. But they have an emblem for "American Censorship Day" across from one for the "Great Firewall". Fantastic juxtaposition. Bravely and skillfully done all around - to post this just after having gotten the domain back.
It's an absolute travesty that it took nearly a year to have this domain returned. A lot of people make their livelihoods from their websites; domains are brands, and the government erroneously damaged these guys' ability to operate. I'd recommend seeking damages if the website was a source of income; even if it wasn't, something needs to be done to prove the point that a little more thought and due process needs to occur before arbitrarily taking things down.
Doesn't seizing domains seem counterproductive? Wouldn't be it more productive to seize the server instead? If you're a pirate network you could keep buying domains, or even changing them. If you had an email list of "subscribers" you could keep shifting the content from domain to domain.
BTW, my own domain is http://www.todaystechdeals.com. Don't seize it you rascally government!!
They should sue them for as much as possible (I know I will be paying for it as a tax payer), they need to be taught a lesson which will make them more careful and rethink their practices.
RTFA, VTFWs (visit the web site?)
That, or ICE took it back again.
USA! USA! USA!
I agree with you that this is a complete travest. However, I would be very surprised if they got any results in court.
The courts have long held that as long as the government has a warrant they can seize any property, freeze any bank accounts, and demolish anything they want in the course of an investigation and don't have to provide any compensation if it turned out you were innocent. Even if you were never suspected of a crime, your property was only tangentially related to the investigation, and seizing it will make you destitute they can still take it, hold it for as long as they want and not pay you a dime. Thank you war on drugs.
Can't they sue for the loss of business and or freedom of speech?
Could the federal government put you in Guantanamo and then release you a year later and just say... sorry
Where is the compensation for undeserved and unreasonable abridgement of you life, liberty and property?
This is what happens when domains are seized on the basis of mere accusations. Instead of the government having to prove that a website's operators are guilty of copyright infringement, the claim alone is enough for the feds to seize a domain that will only be returned either as a gesture of "good will" or if the website's operators can prove they are innocent of that which they haven't been formally accused. Those responsible for such a policy should be ashamed of themselves and their perversion of justice.
"In prison you just have to shut your eyes and take it. Here you have to shut your eyes and give it."
To be clear, it wasn't "mistakenly" seized. It was wrongfully seized. ICE knew exactly which domain it had seized, and denied any wrongdoing for more than a year. This wasn't the result of a typo on a list or anything else that could possibly warrant* calling this a mistake.
It's not as if the feds got back from their domain seizing spree and the wife said "Honey, I told you to pick up Diet DaJaz1.com!"
Not the only "warrantless" event in this situation, either.
Suing them won't matter. It isn't their money.
The people who approved this and their bosses need to be fired as do all the people charged with determining which sites should be "taken." That's at least 3 levels. It is even better if this came from the top.
If fear of losing their job isn't involved, you'll never get the attention of federal employees.
Yes this was wrong, and yes, something should be done about it.
But nothing will be done about it. The reason things like this go on is because nothing is ever done about it.
Pound your fist. Shout about how wrong it is, and be as right as right can be. That won't change a damn thing.
While they killed a legitimate domain and business for a year. If it had actually been an illegal site, it would most likely have been up and available on another domain/site/host within 24 hours.
I don't know why they are wasting tax payer dollars on any of this.
So were they compensated for the loss of a year of revenue and perhaps 'missing the boat' ?
---- Booth was a patriot ----
They are government after all, they have little more intelligence than zombies. Haven't you been to DMV?
Gives me a massive warning in my browser. Seems the antivirus companies just accept what they're told? Time for them to update their definition for this site.
char*f="char*f=%c%s%c;main(){printf(f,34,f,34);}";main(){printf(f,34,f,34);}
The feds can cash in any domain and if it was "by mistake", they just say "whoopsie, sorry" a year later?
With this strategy, you can silence any kind of webpage. In the world of the internet, a year is an eternity. Something that was gone for a year can as well start over with a new domain name. The only difference is in the point of time when they can start rebuilding, instantly with a new domain name vs. a year from now with the old one.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
Call or contact your Senator!
Senate Contacts
Call or contact your Representative!
House Contacts
Get involved another way?
EFF is a good way
of why we need due process in this country, and why it's in the constitution.
...guess we were wrong. Anyway, here's your site back, so no harm no foul, right? I mean come on, we only censored (and for false pretenses) you for a year. What's the problem?
If innocent until proven guilty is inalienable, then why haven't there been more uprisings in Great Britain, where defamation is reverse onus?
The Bad Guys (that is, the record labels acting through the government) shut down the site for a year. This is a WIN for the bad guys no matter how you look at it. Why are people celebrating? Heck, the lawyer can't even be sure of getting notices of extensions??? What kind of banana republic is this? If they (the Bad Guys, see above) can do this at will, and it increasingly looks like they will be buying the laws they want, then USA has a whole new kind of copyright that is completely different from any old ideas of rights and fair use. Enough lobbying money having been spent - Let the era of CopyWrong begin.
but i doubt a judge would rule against another judge on that.
A judge ruling against a judge is the definition of an appeal.
Personally sue the officer who filed a false claim with the court (that he downloaded copyrighted material from the site) and sue the judge that approved the illegal order. When there are no personal consequences, then there will be large and frequent errors.
Learn to love Alaska
Every time something like this happens, it seems some sort of compensation should be in order. And every time justice seems to fail to be done. Sigh.
Now the seized domains go directly to a YouTube video after about 10 seconds. The funny thing is that you cannot block Icegov account on Youtube it seems. It did not work me it when I did test it. IceGov also does not allow ratings or comments with its propaganda videos on piracy.
Why is this coming from the department of Homeland Security? The department that was created, established because of the events of 9/11? And to think, while we all laughed at the color-coded terrorist threats, we find the same department that was created for the sole purpose of securing its citizens from foreign, unseen threats to be the same department leveraging their power to censor and intimidate its very citizens without due process of law. Proper discourse is fractured if not altogether absent in this country. We are in a state of a "nervous breakdown." Don't even think that this hyperbole.
and no apology.. Speaks volumes about the kind of folks at the homeland 'security' dept..
i don't get this argument
an asset can be seized to cover a debt.
here, government forces that debt on you, but how is that different from taxation in general?
I listen to both RIAA and non-RIAA stuff if I like the music, tangential business/politics nonwithstanding.
Listen, you guys are having elections soon. This is you only recourse.
It is the only thing big money can not take away from you, yet. Although those new id restrictions law you are passing down in Florida are scary.
Don't write your senetor a few dozen e-mails is useless. Mount a local information campain reach out to as many people as you can explaining to them what their position is. The one thing that they do not want you to do is propagate any information.
It's called tyranny. It is the presumption of guilt at work, finding guilt to be guilty. It is the first use of force applied to someone who represents their presumption of guilt. There is no due process because there are no rights present in the "guilty". Innocent until proven guilty MUST be the assumption, or justice doesn't exist. Tyranny is the only alternative to justice when the presumption of guilt is allowed. "But if we did that we couldn't make the laws work!" Too bad tyrant! "But if we did that, we can't win the war on________!" Too bad tyrant! "But if we do that, everyone is innocent!" Yeah, too bad tyrant! "If we are all innocent, then nobody will do as they are told!" Told by WHO? To do WHAT? WHY? Free people do what they can. Slaves do what the tyrants tell them, or else.....Take Down!
Most people are mostly good most of the time.
I keep misreading the headline as, "Feds Mistakenly Return Seized Domain," which seems a lot more plausible than the actual headline.