Vancouver Based Dotster Still Under Fire For Terrorist Hosting

Dotster, a Vancouver, Washington based Web Host and Domain Registrar Company has once again come under fire for hosting a web site linked to a known radical Jihadist terrorist group.

Dotster, located near Westfield Shopping Center (formerly the Vancouver Mall), was first linked as a web host to a Somalia Al Shabaab terrorist group using the domain of kataaib.net earlier this year.



It was May 2008 when the Columbian ran an Op-Ed mentioning Bill Warner, a Sarasota, Florida private investigator’s effort to have Dotster shut down the web site.

Citing First Amendment concerns, Dotster CEO, Clint Page said, “We can’t just arbitrarily go in and shut down sites based on what someone finds offensive,” adding that the problem with Warner's approach is the danger of it leading to abuses and resulting in shutting down sites that are Political Advocates, the ACLU or even the NRA.

An odd disclaimer from them considering that in April 2003, Dotster had no problem pulling down the web site BoycottHollywood.com and voiding their contract with them, forcing them to move to another web host.

Also in May 2008, the Jawa Report wrote of the Columbian’s first article by Courtney Sherwood, referring to Bill Warner’s group as a “group of self-described anti-terrorist vigilantes.”

In that article, Brian Unruh, chief financial officer at Dotster was quoted as saying,

“We are not in a position to judge and be a jury on what content may be legal or acceptable,” adding, “The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the right to freedom of speech and expression, and for that reason Dotster attempts to be very careful about balancing the rights of its customers with other concerns.”

Was that a consideration with BoycottHollywood.com, just 4 years earlier?

Apparently Dotster must have felt there was insufficient evidence that Al-Shabaab was part of the kataaib.net domain they host and claims to have forwarded the information from Warner to the “right authorities.”

The matter was dropped and sat until recently. Once again, the Jawa Report records a translated page supplied by the NEFA foundation of an intercepted message from Al-Shabaab, ostensibly “correcting” an Al Jazeera article claiming they were in opposition to the Somalia Pirates in the news lately for several high profile ship high jacking.

While the translated communiqué focuses primarily on “setting the record straight” about the group not opposing the pirates, directing Al Jazeera and other interested persons to their PR Web Page, they state,

“The movement has an official website [www.kataaib.net] which carries our official statements. Additionally, we have an official wing that manages all of our audio, video, and written releases. That wing is known as the 'Sada al-Jihad Media Center' and it belongs to the Global Islamic Media Front'.” (emphasis added)

Returning to Dotster’s own “whois” page, searching for kataaib.net reveals,

Domain Services Provided By:
domain.com, support@support.domain.com
http://www.domain.com

Registrant:
kataaib cilmi
jidka sodonka
marka caday, warta 5554
SO

Registrar: DOTSTER
Domain Name: KATAAIB.NET
Created on: 13-APR-07
Expires on: 13-APR-09
Last Updated on: 13-APR-07

Administrative, Technical Contact:
cilmi, kataaib kataaib@yahoo.com
jidka sodonka
marka caday, warta 5554
SO
2521537262

Just to be clear, I do not subscribe to any notion that Dotster knowingly supports or engages in any terrorist activities, by Al-Shabbat or any other group. Dotster, like many other companies, has millions of customers. Not all customers are what we would deem “good customers.”

Earlier this year Dotster seemed unable to link Al-Shabaab, a known terrorist group to their client, kataaib.net. Given the claim intercepted and translated above, Al-Shabaab has now provided a clear link between the two.

Perhaps now Dotster will be able to “void their contract” with this terrorist group with as much ease as they did with an American group drawing attention to the Liberalism of Hollywood actors.

Cross Posted To Clark County Conservative