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Notorious website backpage.com has been seized according to NY Daily News.
Sex ads platform Backpage.com was seized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Friday hours after its founder's Phoenix home was raided.
Visitors to the site landed on a notice from the federal government announcing its seizure.
"Backpage.com and affiliated websites have been seized as part of an enforcement action by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, with analytical assistance from the Joint Regional Intelligence Center," the announcement read.
Founder's home also raided by the FBI Friday morning.
U.S. Government Seizes backpage.com
The FBI, Justice Department, and other agencies have seized backpage.com, and one of the co-founders had their home raided:
On Friday, federal law enforcement authorities seized Backpage domain names, including Backpage.com and Backpage.ca. In addition, the Arizona Republic reported that on Friday morning, law enforcement raided the Sedona-area home of Michael Lacey, a co-founder of the site.
For years, Backpage has acted with impunity as a place that offered thinly veiled online prostitution ads. In December 2016, Backpage CEO Carl Ferrer and his co-defendants beat back a state prosecution in California.
Sex workers aren't happy, and could be endangered by the move as well as the recent passage of the Stop Enabling Sex Trafficking Act (SESTA). SESTA is not yet in effect.
Also at CNN, WSJ, The Hill, and The Verge.
Previously: Supreme Court Chief Justice Blocks Congressional Subpoena Over First Amendment Rights
Backpage's Dallas Offices Raided, CEO Charged With "Pimping"
"Pimping" Charges Against Backpage Executives Dismissed
After Release of U.S. Senate Report, Backpage Shuts Down U.S. Adult Section
Related: Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act - 20 Years of Protecting Intermediaries
Craigslist Removes Personals Sections in the U.S.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 07 2018, @06:30PM (1 child)
Most likely the recent change in the law. Backpages.com and the Feds have been going at it for many years and the timing is probably just a matter of the fact that there's been a change in law that provided the prosecutors more power to do something about it.
I'm not sure where people got the idea that this was somehow new or unexpected, they would have done this years ago if they had the power to do so.
(Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Saturday April 07 2018, @06:42PM
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