information Communism.com, auctioned at Sedo 03/18, stolen

[Nametree]

For one reason or another I thought to visit Communism.com today, remembering that it sold early 2018 in an auction I had been watching. Out of curiosity, I also visited communism.org, and was surprised to see this claim referring to communism.com, struggle.net and pix.org:

I intend to initiate a public campaign
to regain the domain names that
were taken from my possession
by means of identity theft:

• communism.com
• struggle.net
• pix.org

In 2018, hacker thieves used identity theft to hijack these domain names from me. My domain name registrar, GoDaddy, has been completely unhelpful in giving me even basic information related to when and how these domain names were unlawly removed from my control. GoDaddy has refused to talk directly to me about this and has told me that I need to have a lawyer contact them. But lawyers cost hundreds of dollars an hour and I cannot afford to pay expensive legal fees as, like most people, I have my hands full just paying my rent.

Last time I checked these domain names were being offered for sale (in the case of communism.com, for more than $200,000).

These domain names
belong to the movement
I have been the custodian of these names for more than 20 years, and have met all legal requirements and paid fees each year to maintain them.

I used the struggle.net domain to archive 20 years of my theoretical work and political writing. This theoretical work and political writing is no longer available and thousands of links all over the internet are now broken.

The pix.org domain name was intended to function as a URL shortener for the movement.

The hacker/thieves stole communism.com but they failed to steal communism.org and I intend to use communism.org as a platform to organize a public campaign to regain these names for the movement.

I will need your help to make this happen.

I need help
I need free legal assistance. I need someone with a legal background to help me draft:

1. A Request for Information letter to GoDaddy asking them for technical details to determine exactly when and how these domain names were hijacked
2. A Cease and Desist letter to be sent to all companies and entities associated with the current host of these domains and the efforts to market these domains to unsuspecting buyers

I need volunteers to do legal research.

I need people to write letters and help spread the word.

I need activists to help me figure out how to make use of these domains to serve the movement if or when the campaign to take them back is successful.

Contact me
If you would like to help, or think you can help--let me hear from you.

After a recent computer crash--I am working on getting my email, wordpress blog, facebook and other channels of communication functional again. As a temporary measure in the meantime--you should be able to connect with me via the reddit at:https://www.reddit.com/r/Marxists_USCA/
Ben Seattle,
October 23, 2019

Communism.com sold for just over $10k at Sedo, and is now listed for $200k+. I vaguely remember seeing pix.org for sale this year, but I can't find any record for it so I may be wrong.

Either way, just a warning - yet another case of a stolen name successfully selling at Sedo.

 

[Chris Hydrick]

In 2018, hacker thieves used identity theft to hijack these domain names from me. My domain name registrar, GoDaddy

WHOIS History Breakdown for Communism.com

WHOIS Updated Date: 2018-03-10T14:29:18Z On March 10th, 2018, Communism.com WHOIS record changed Registrant Organization from long time registrant Weapon of Transparency to Domains By Proxy, LLC. The domain remained at GoDaddy.

NameBio: Sale March 31st, 2018 for $10,099 via @Sedo

WHOIS Updated Date: 2018-04-06T08:25:01Z On April 6th, 2018, WHOIS changed from Domains By Proxy, LLC to Sedo, LLC (Transfer Service)

WHOIS Updated Date: 2018-06-08T20:17:40Z On June 8th, 2018, WHOIS registrar changed from GoDaddy (tagging @Paul Nicks to inform a GoDaddy rep) to Name.com (tagging @name.com) Domain Protection Services, Inc.

**WHOIS History from DomainIQ.com

 

[vikki88]

Thanks for the info

 

[Chris Hydrick]

Digging a little deeper...

Pix.org

Archive Screenshot of Pix.org on March 18th, 2018 shows:

April 11th, 2018 archive.org screenshot shows the domain pointed to an efty landing page.

Struggle.net

If the alleged original owner hasn't already, he might want to consider reaching out to the decency of the new owners, explain the situation, and humbly ask each Sedo buyer to share the sellers information. -- short of taking an official legal approach subpoenaing appropriate parties.

If one buyer reveals the seller information, he can ask the other buyers to simply confirm or deny if they purchased the domain from the same seller. Even if the domains were sold by the same seller, WHOIS updates would need to be confirmed to ensure the domains weren't quickly sold to an unknowing SEDO seller, as unlikely as it may seem.

 

[BuyBrandWeb.com]

Digging a little deeper...

Pix.org

Show attachment 136068

Archive Screenshot of Pix.org on March 18th, 2018 shows:

I have placed bids on this auction and I guess it was $x,xxx USD bid(s)!

 

[Armageddon]

Very strange. I don't say who own Communism.org lie , but the domain is for sale on Sedo ( the seller have account since 2017 from US )
Communism.com ( as you say @Nametree ) also for sale on Sedo , seller have account since 2005 / US
IMO i think this person is frustrated because sell this domains cheap
By the way Communism.org sold on Sedo with 211 $ back in 2018 .
So Ben Seattle ( if is real name ) say someone stole Communism.com etc..but who did not succeed with Communism.org ..really ?!
I think ( imo ) this person try or want to try to steal the other domains ..but this is my opinion based on what i see

 

[MapleDots]

I need help

I need free legal assistance. I need someone with a legal background to help me draft:

1. A Request for Information letter to GoDaddy asking them for technical details to determine exactly when and how these domain names were hijacked
2. A Cease and Desist letter to be sent to all companies and entities associated with the current host of these domains and the efforts to market these domains to unsuspecting buyers

I need volunteers to do legal research.

I need people to write letters and help spread the word.

I need activists to help me figure out how to make use of these domains to serve the movement if or when the campaign to take them back is successful.

Wow, might as well ask for the moon and the sky too, that's a lot of help for free.

If I was the domain owner, I would consider the value of the domains and hire a proper domain lawyer to represent me. If he absolutely cannot afford it he could always ask for financial backers based on the value of the domains.

I find it kind of interesting that when people lose a domain to fraud they automatically want to be represented for free. What is it about the domaining industry that gives us such entitlement?

If it were me, and I truly could not afford it, I would at least say whoever helps me to successfully regain the domains will get a percentage share of the sale when the domains sell.

 

[CraigD]

If they were stolen, the first thing I would do is contact my local police department.
Theft is a crime.
You don't need a lawyer to prove that a crime has occurred.

 

[King]

I just wanted to say f*ck communism