January 7, 2002
Pornography purveyors
piggybacking on Christian websites
___By Ken Walker
___Associated Baptist Press
___INDIANAPOLIS (ABP)--Christian ministries are inadvertently becoming purveyors of smut as pornographers "hijack" expired websites, either to lure unsuspecting visitors to pornographic sites or to earn a profit by selling the URL back to its original owner.
___The Indiana Baptist newspaper is among the latest victims of a scheme that has affected various ministries, non-profit organizations, government agencies and political leaders.
___Six months after the Indianapolis-based paper moved its content to a new state convention website, it gave up its rights to a former domain name. The day the old URL became available, pornography appeared on the old site.
___Registered to a person supposedly in an obscure location in Russia, the bogus Baptist page now warns that it contains adult content and includes a note that the site is for sale.
___Editor Chip Bayer said he considers it an indirect form of extortion, which the newspaper has decided to ignore. He said he consulted an attorney about possible legal action but learned it would be expensive and might not succeed.
___When he told a public policy firm about the problem, a representative replied, "You're the second Christian group this has happened to this week."
___Descriptive website names can be registered for only a small fee. When they aren't renewed, however, they become available first-come, first-served. With the growing influence of the Internet, domain names for promotional uses have become a hot commodity. Speculators can profit by registering desirable site names and reselling them.
___Internet pornographers, meanwhile, use innocuous-sounding website names to attract unsuspecting Internet surfers who wouldn't otherwise log onto their sites.
___In this latest twist, Internet pornographers look for domain terms like "Baptist" or "Christian" in hopes that groups will be willing to buy back expired addresses to get offensive material off them.
___It becomes an even greater problem because search engines will continue to point to old sites even after they no longer are used. And infrequent visitors may have outdated links listed as favorite places in their own browsers.
___"What Christian groups need to realize is they've become a target for pornographers," said Steve NeSmith, who handles Internet content for LifeWay Christian Resources. "They offer content, knowing if they can get young people or someone to view their site for 30 to 60 seconds, they can hook them."
___A recent story in Wired News said the International Lutheran Woman's Mission League, the Nebraska Department of Education, the Ohio State Senate and municipalities from Kentucky and Iowa had been victims of similar problems.
___Steve Hewitt, editor of Christian Computing magazine, said the practice of X-rated merchants buying up website names was discussed at a technology and ministry conference in Anaheim, Calif., this fall.
___"They represent a huge part of the economy of the Internet, and they've got money," Hewitt said. "They may set up one page and buy 10 addresses, with links to that page."
___Congress passed legislation in 1998 to prevent just this kind of phenomenon. But thus far, there have been problems enforcing the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, a Samford University law professor said.
___Thomas Berg, who teaches constitutional and intellectual property law, said one problem is locating the culprit, such as the porn producer that reportedly operates from Armenia.
___Another is when someone abandons the site, he rightfully allows others to lay claim to it.
___The best protection against pornographers is to first weigh the costs of maintaining an Internet site, according to a member of LifeWay's e-business group.
___"I hate to be simplistic about it, but they have to do some due diligence," said marketing manager Gary McClure. "Make sure it's viable, and when it's close to expiring, renew it."
___Steve Watters of Focus on the Family, who recently wrote a book on overcoming Internet addictions, advises ministries to exercise caution and think of who the new "tenant" might be if they release their domain name.
___With estimates that on-line pornography generated $1.75 billion last year and may surpass $3 billion by 2003, the threat isn't likely to vanish soon.
___"There's no federal regulation that says it's illegal," NeSmith said. "It's unethical, but it's not illegal."
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