SEATTLE –A group of convicted sex offenders is suing three websites for posting their photos and personal information and then allegedly charging them to take the information down. In their federal lawsuit, the sex offenders claim that is extortion. “I was shocked and at the same time I was almost devastated,” said one of the sex offenders, who has asked to be referred to as John Doe. Article
Sex offenders sue over personal info posted online
- ·March 22, 2013
- ·56 Comments
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I wonder why they didn’t target these other websites?
Mugshots.com : They want $399 to remove (http://unpublisharrest.com/)
Bustedoffenders.com / Bustedmugshots.com / BustedGrid.com:
They sell $12.95 subscriptions, and will NOT remove anyone with a sex offense.
The phone number of UNPUBLISHARREST.COM matches the phone number of MUGSHOTS.COM removal service. Let me get this straight: UNPUBLISHARREST.COM is the service provided by MUGSHOTS.COM.
So when mugshots.com publishes your face, then provides a service to remove it. Given the information i have so far, i would no longer be suprised that Offendex/SORArchives.com is also the same operation as Mugshots.com and affiliates. Especially since geographically, the operations come from the same location(s). ***
****
*** There are a lot of really pis*ed off people right now.
*** Edited: Please refrain from calls to violence. Moderator
Homefacts has me listed as a “Child Molester/Act of fondling a child” in “Unknown, Tx”. What a disgrace that these corrupt assholes are allowed to post such lies on here…and then want to charge you $400 to take it off. Blackmail and fraud. I have never even got as much as a traffic ticket in Texas. And, there is no such place as “Unknown, Texas”. This is a scam.
Getting thiere information wrong to is slandering people. Wrong court records. And telling people addresses to promote violence also. Then trying charge money to fix it .please take note of these problems. Ty
I’m going to file a lawsuit against Homefacts I no longer have to register as a sex offender and i have contacted them through email as well as messenger to remove my photo! I have been removed from the nationwide site but, it still appears on their site. My patience have worn out with them!!!
Anon,
We are trying to set a precedent for the other sites. Hopefully we can rid the web of these online scams.
http://www.homefacts.com/offenders.html
I think they overstep the bounds of public service, and use sensationalism to sell homes.
It’s understandable a person might want to know if there are offenders near where they plan to buy a home, however there are state resources for that information, resources that don’t publish the offender on google for the entire world with google access to see.
Even after sending an email with a court order excessively stating that the said offender is to be immediately removed from ALL sites, homefacts.com ignores such said order(s). They ARE accountable for their site(s) in such manner. They need a lawsuit against them for this.
It’s been 20 years since it happened.. I was 19 in she was 16 at the time..I did my time. but they still have my pictures on the internet.i was working they found out, in I was fired.. I have a h
I really think these scammers should have to do time and then be put on their own registry. The vast majority of sex offenders WILL NOT repeat their offenses. i am in no way trying to justify the acts they committed, but I really believe that society should spend more time looking for the offenders that haven’t been caught yet rather then the ones who have. I also feel that a registry has its place, but it is instead being used as a tool to ostracize, and blacklist ex-offenders so they can’t find homes, work or develop ANY kind of social responsibility and healthy relationships. I understand the victims are going to have to live with it for the rest of their lives, but they CAN find jobs, education, and healthy relationships without having to worry about someone shooting them the next time they answer the door because some site gave a sociopath their address. Wake up society! Without the ability to reestablish a life, how can society blame a sex offender for committing another crime. They really only have themselves to blame. Society is pushing them to it because they want some false sense of security.
Bless you for being so open minded. I have worked with people trying to get their lives back after being convicted of a sex crime. They might as well have been given a life sentence. No one is willing to give them a job, let them live near people, or even in most cases volunteer with a church. What are these people to do if no one is willing to help them learn from what has happened to them? And if one of them has actually been wrongly convicted it’s even more of an issue. Society continues to punish long after the courts have finished theirs. We allow murderers, thieves & drug dealers to be released with a better chance at starting over. Are they any less dangerous?
HomeFacts deals in fearmongering. I hope someone puts them on a list… the out of business one.
Whatever happened to offendex.com? Last I saw they were still alive. Under a different name and what looks like without the ‘extortion’ factor. Their records, however, still include expired registrants and they make note of the historical nature of their site. Is this legal?
Home facts is lying on me. I would like a address and phone number to them.
i would like one as well my email is alan.m@comcast.net they have me erroneously listed in augusta as being on the sex offender registry and i am not. totally disgusting. and there is no contact information on their site to be able to contact them via phone or email.
Is there a legal way to remove your data from homefacts.com?
Home facts.com is over-stepping by publishing profiles under an individual’s name
I just lost a job offer due to home facts.com SRO which was for have a possession of two pictures. The company knew about it and was ok…but the only thing listed on me is Homefacts SRO and they are scarred to give me a job in case the competition finds out.
Said it was due to home facts link in google…if it goes away they will give me the job back.
I am curious as to what high moral standard was your former company held to. Don’t tell me it is a telemarketing company! I know I always check the registry before I accept my pizza from the delivery man, I say, “wait, let me check you out first”, unless I’m real hungry, then I don’t bother!
They are just costing taxpayers additional money as they keep messing with this system, constantly making simple survival for registrants all but impossible, for people who are trying to do the right thing; eventually it might create another unintended consequence. If prior offenders can’t find work or a place to live, they might just lose hope and 5150 themselves, just to stay off the streets and survive. Some might have health issues and find it impossible to remain healthy any other way.
What was the outcome of that lawsuit challenge ..?
The real issue is that the news media has a long history of treating society as its own personal reality show. Once you convince people that such and such action needs to be done, the news media will then sit back and watch how people react to it. The underlying effect is to provide society with the means to discriminate- which they crave. Discriminate against the immigration from Mexico… Discriminate against the top 2%… Discriminate against this that and the other.
The Sex Ofender registration act is an act against the constitution of the united states. It makes sex offenders register their pictures, names, addresses place of employment (if they are lucky enough to have a job) and make all that information public- yet no murderers, no drug dealers, no mobsters or anyone else who goes to prison has to register in that manner. Further, for some, this is a life long sentence. In reality, not too many cases of registered offenders recommit, while hordes of non registered/non convicted offenders do. Is it right to use this a tool to prevent an offender from recidivism when other types of offenders are free to go back to their life of crime?
Maybe the more appropriate thing to do is to revisit the freedom of information act- it really hangs all our asses out to dry- It enables a lot of the common scams- credit card fraud, for instance. If you make access a bit harder, such that those with a need to know- and not a need to snoop and gossip, have the minimum information they need, then it would be harder to deal with the reprecutions of so much our our personal information out their and available.
Why do companies/individuals have the right to look up my credit information to loan me money if I never went to borrow from them in the first place? Why does the woman whos boyfriend posted nude pix of her to a revenge porn site have to copyright her own breasts just to get her pictures removed from the internet? it’s too much!
how do I get removed from homefacts and others???
Homefacts have published incorrect information about me. Sadly I can not afford a lawyer to take these people on. Where is the justice in America? Anyone want to partner in a law suit, please let me know. I will check for responses.
How does one contact home facts?
If you want to have your names removed, good luck. But linking the websites in forums like this one only promotes their search results. Please remove hyperlinks.
If your image is one of the first on Google, you can try to have it removed by reporting images on the top left of image results
Does anyone know the outcome of the home facts lawsuit ?
Furthermore is anyone on here a tech expert. I would gladly pay you to bury the home facts page , it shows up on the first google page when my husbands name is googled. He is terrified a co worker might come across this as they always Google each others names to pull funny Facebook pictures and old photos to embarrass one another for birthdays and such in the office.
Can someone help us ?
There is a company (was featured on Shark Tank TV show) which grantees to bury negative items. They are called BrandYourself.com . It is not cheap for their top service. A few hundred dollars.
BrandYourself.com will not work with registered sex offenders. It says so on their site directly.
When you Google my name (I was afraid to do it for so long) all you see is my FB and LinkedIn profiles and links to tech articles I have written. Photos of me are all social media profile pics. I’ve not heard of BrandYourself.com, but this sounds a lot like Reputation Defender which is marketed to businesses who want to bury bad comments about them, such as on Yelp, Yahoo Local or Google Places. They create tons of web pages devoted to how wonderful you are.
I now post my name and company URL as much as I can with my tech articles, bulletin board comments, etc. Is it no longer just a part of my SEO strategy for my corporate web site, but my personal brand, as well.
You’ll forgive me if I so not post my name here, however. As much as I love CA RSOL, it would only cheapen my brand. 😉
Lesson for you here is to post as much GOOD information about your husband online as possible on the most common social media web sites. Make positive comments related to happy feel good articles. The more those pages are trafficked, the further down the Home “Facts” page will move down until it is eventually pushed to the 2nd and 3rd pages where Googlers rarely venture. I would not post his name in comments associated with articles about how the registry, etc.
So you think that commenting on articles about RC issues will put you higher in the search results. That is a scary thought, but I have wondered about that.
Using your real name, or linking articles with your actual name in it sure will put you right to the top.
I have a fairly common name. I am wondering how many hundreds of others would come up with the label, because of me (hee hee). I think it was mentioned before, but maybe we all ought to all change our names to John Doe.
I looked up someone I had knew from a long time ago. Their image came up from another web site called “getting busted” or something like that, showing their image on an offender registry.
It may or may not put you higher in search results, however, when his name comes up, he might not want it to be in the comments section where he is condemning the registry or defending a registered citizen.
Any place his name shows up should on sites and comments sections that give everyone across the political spectrum the warm and fuzzies, or convey a sense of authority or expert level in his profession. If you Google his name, the first thing that should come up is a very professional LinkedIn profile, the second thing is a great Facebook profile (surrounded by loving family and friends, not puking or lighting farts at a frat party), Instagram, Twitter, etc. If they want to find dirt on this otherwise good man, make them dig ever deeper. 🙂
I need someone who does SEO. I tried it and couldn’t get the knack and got bored with it. Essentially, my company is invisible, so I don’t get many calls. Have a few loyal clients who call me back now and again. Don’t trust these people who email me and say they can get my website on the top of the searches. I suppose some potential clients could be researching me before hand. They really push these sites like Instant Checkmate.
At this point I DON’T CARE. I am tired of hiding, acting like a fugitive, when all I have done is follow their rules.
Timmmy, but has anyone been successful using them? We have contacted a few and they basically laughed and said they wouldn’t help us.
You can test them out. They have a free account (limited), a monthly account, without limits for less than $10 a month, and the pricey assisted help.
Here is the email I get from them:
————————-
I’m Evan, co-founder of BrandYourself.
I noticed that you had 15 negative results appear when I Googled you. Are you free for a quick call so I can explain how you can bury them and replace them with positive, relevant content? Just pick a time here. If we’re all booked, just e-mail me or call (646) 863-8282.
I also took a look at your account and found some important things you can do to improve your Google results. While we’re on the phone, I’d be happy to give you a free consultation to improve your online presence.
Let me a know a time that works to chat. Looking forward to it!
– Evan
Brandyourself will not help SO’s.. They declined me. Reputation defender will RIP you off for thousands… you might as well throw your money in the trash. Your best op, which worked for me is negative SEO.. buried everything. If anyone needs a contact, please reply.
I’m interested in the negative SEO contact info. Thanks in advance…much appreciated.
I posted a specific contact, but the moderator wont allow it on here…sorry… try fiverr.com and look for negative SEO
thanks a bunch. I did the search and found two hits. One of the two have 5 reviews. Anyway…
So you had success with this? Person was able to help for just a few hundred? They knew what you were trying to bury and still helped out? I could see some refusing to help (even at charge like some sites). It’s worth a lot more than a few hundred to me to push down the negative google search results. Beats being jobless and homeless. Have a wife and two kids to support.
An unscrupulous person that had this expertise (negative SEO) could use it for extortion if they wanted….charging thousands for it.
My crime…3 illegal files amongst a peer-to-peer porn hoard of over 1.5TB. Went from being a porn addict to “predator” overnight.
Thank you I would love to try them. Any info would sure help
I believe I’m hooked up with the same outfit/person that “been there” used. It’s $600 per month for six months…so $3,600 total. For this price they will do their thing to push the negative google search results to the 2nd page of a google search. For $900 for six months…they will push the negative results to the 3rd page. I’m already seeing positive results but it will take more time to push the negative articles to the 2nd page. Searching my name alone isn’t bad (don’t have an unusual name) but also include the name of the city I live in (is also the city I was arrested in) and it’s not good. Arrested for possession. The person doing the work knows the details of my arrest and doesn’t seem to have a problem helping bury the articles. I still need to contact them and ask if they use any “black hat” tactics to bury the undesired search results.
Hi could u please call me about getting my SO info removed I saw your post on line. 615-608-2461 thank you
Here’s something to think about. United States is bragging and advertising to the whole world they have offenders. Before anyone even comes into the country, they know where they live, work ect. Sites like Homefacts are helping the bragging rights.
I want to take this minute to talk about what its like living in South Carolina.
When I got released in 2003, I had to register once a year, two years later they changed it to twice, some time later they changed it to 4 times a year and now you have to pay 150.00 registration fee once a year on your birthday. So instead of you getting a 150bucks on your birthday, you have to give it to the Sheriffs office. Well it ain’t all bad I guess.
No one ever comes out here to check on me but maybe once a year. My RO is a nice guy,and wishes they would roll back the number of times for us. I think South Carolina is the only state in the union with a registered sex offender who is an employee at the south carolina dept of corrections. Can you believe that! and hes the Chaplain.I was on the same yard this Chaplain worked so my knowledge is legit. Its people like him that gives all of us hope and courage to make it through one more day of rejection.And if anyone out there has a CDL and cant find work in California,, There are two companies here that will put you to work!! The only catch is that you have to live in SC.
I would never put up with any of that B********
I am appalled at this! I plead guilty to possession of 4 illegal images. I am NOT a threat to the community!
I’m in Tennessee can someone please help me get off the online websites that post all your info. My mobile number is 615 608 2461 thank you
I have been completed my registration but home facts still falsely has info about it up how do I get it removed
Muhshots.com owners recently got arrested for extortion. They will have to wait for trial to see if they are found guilty. However, from what I understand there are no laws that say site owners cannot charge a reasonable fee for removing content for their time. So you either have to pay them or hire a reputation management company to suppress them.
I just won the case against me out of Seattle WA. It was appealed by Brent Oesterblad and he lost that appeal.
@Nicholas Maietta:
Congrats! Was this an appeal of the earlier case you won (as defendant)? Regardless, I’m happy for you.
just like other web sites that say they are public info, should offer a opt out option
With a google search if you start typing the term “sex offenders” the first suggestion for me is “sex offenders near me”, and this brings up the site: http://www.familywatchdog.us , which says “Local Sex Predators” . Once in the site, you can just type the zipcode or the city and get a map and find everyone in it who’s on the registration list. I’m wondering if this familywatchdog.us site can be gone after for implying that people on the map are predators.
Does anyone know where the 1st amendment stands on an individuals face?
Such as posting someone’s face in a public forum or future facial recognition scans…?