How to shut down scammer / phishing websites?

[MemoryDealers]

I just came across this scammer website:  www.bitcoinestore.com (with an E after bitcoin)

It has NOTHING to do with the real www.bitcoinstore.com  (no extra e)

They are even claiming that the scammer site is powered by memorydealers.com

I've already reported it to http://www.google.com/safebrowsing/report_phish/

Any ideas what else can be done?

[1714864697]

1714864697

[1714864697]

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[1714864697]

1714864697

[greyhawk]

Report it to the diverse antivirus networks too.

That's pretty much all you can do. Unfortunately such sites are usually hosted by other criminals that simply don't care to take down the site.

[Epicurus]

I just came across this scammer website:  www.bitcoinestore.com (with an E after bitcoin)

It has NOTHING to do with the real www.bitcoinstore.com  (no extra e)

They are even claiming that the scammer site is powered by memorydealers.com

I've already reported it to http://www.google.com/safebrowsing/report_phish/

Any ideas what else can be done?

If Bitcoin Store is their registered trademark, they will ultimately be able to have that domain seized, as it's clearly infringing. Same thing that happens if you were to register something like "Faceebook" (which Facebook already owns, having probably seized it from someone doing exactly this).

[epetroel]

If it's hosted in the USA, you could probably file a DMCA takedown request with their hosting provider.  If not though, you are probably out of luck.

[bitcoinbear]

This is bitcoin ... there should be a way to pay for a DDoS against them ...

[Carlton Banks]

Any ideas what else can be done?

If we can make Bitcoin even more successful, these guys'll be able to earn an honest living instead! 

[escrow.ms]

Contact Registrar, they will suspend domain.

[lv426]

i'm a professional DMCA agent.
this means i file DMCA takedown requests (tens of thousands of them) for a living...

unfortunately, you can't file a complaint out of the blue.
you must adhere to some formal rules.

most important, you need to be the right holder or authorized to act on his behalf.

this means, the original bitcoinstore.com needs to file the complaint.

They can contact me via pm, i would do it for them free of charge.

Or i can give them a working template email and basic info on how to do it on their own.

[escrow.ms]

i'm a professional DMCA agent.
this means i file DMCA takedown requests (tens of thousands of them) for a living...

unfortunately, you can't file a complaint out of the blue.
you must adhere to some formal rules.

most important, you need to be the right holder or authorized to act on his behalf.

this means, the original bitcoinstore.com needs to file the complaint.

They can contact me via pm, i would do it for them free of charge.

Or i can give them a working template email and basic info on how to do it on their own.

What DMCA has to do with a phishing site??

Op, i have reported that site, domain will go down soon.

[lv426]

What DMCA has to do with a phishing site??

nature of the site is irrelevant. they use the same name, same icon...
if the original site got a trademark/copyright on it, they can file a DMCA.

[epetroel]

What DMCA has to do with a phishing site??

nature of the site is irrelevant. they use the same name, same icon...
if the original site got a trademark/copyright on it, they can file a DMCA.

Exactly.  I haven't checked out the site, but I assume they would have ripped of some of your copyrighted content (images, text, etc).  That should be enough for a claim. 

Even if it isn't, what are they gonna do? Sue you? Good luck to them with that

[escrow.ms]

What DMCA has to do with a phishing site??

nature of the site is irrelevant. they use the same name, same icon...
if the original site got a trademark/copyright on it, they can file a DMCA.

What if site is hosted on a offshore DMCA ignored server?

Edit it is.

network:Organization:LiCHAO
network:Street-Address:haerbingongchengdaxue
network:City:Haerbin
network:State:heilongjiang
network:Country-Code:CN

[John (John K.)]

What DMCA has to do with a phishing site??

nature of the site is irrelevant. they use the same name, same icon...
if the original site got a trademark/copyright on it, they can file a DMCA.

What if site is hosted on a offshore DMCA ignored server?

Edit it is.

network:Organization:LiCHAO
network:Street-Address:haerbingongchengdaxue
network:City:Haerbin
network:State:heilongjiang
network:Country-Code:CN

Meh, we've been getting them a lot since the mtgix days. It's the same individual/group.

[nomnomnom]

What if site is hosted on a offshore DMCA ignored server?

Edit it is.

network:Organization:LiCHAO
network:Street-Address:haerbingongchengdaxue
network:City:Haerbin
network:State:heilongjiang
network:Country-Code:CN

These are the same people running bitcoinarr ( the scam that gets posted everywhere,reddit,forum  50 bitcoins for 800$ etc... )
Would love to see somebody take those fuckers down.

network:Auth-Area:108.163.192.0/18
network:IP-Network:108.163.231.96/28
network:Organization:LiCHAO


If you google lichao, this seems to be some smart chinese chess master lol...

[lv426]

ah well, who cares about their whois entries, you have several vectors for a DMCA on them...

http://www.singlehop.com/
if they do not comply, then you escalate to

https://www.wholesaleinternet.net/

[lv426]

i did only a surface analysis, if people post more infos about this group, i will dig deeper...

here is some more info on singlehop (AS32475)

http://as.robtex.com/as32475.html

[ArticMine]

I would talk first with a trademark and copyright lawyer since I suspect both trademark and copyright infringement here. An initial consultation is well worth the money in these situations.

Options can be:
DMCA notices, targeting search engines, hosting providers etc. based in the United States.
Go after the domain name under the ICANN process for trademark infringement.
Do some research: Who are they using as a payment processor both for Bitcoin and fiat?  Who is their domain registrar? Who are their suppliers? This can be useful if you find a US nexus to go after for example in litigation.

PS: I found the service at the real Bitcoinstore to be excellent.

[acoindr]

Where are you guys getting the China stuff?

@lv426 appears correct. The site seems hosted by SingleHop.com located in Chicago:

Corporate Headquarters:

SingleHop, LLC.
ATTN: Account Management
215 W. Ohio St. 5th Floor
Chicago, IL 60654

Legal Inquiries

All legal inquiries should be
sent via fax and certified mail
to the addresses below.
At this time we do not accept
legal inquiries via E-mail.
Fax: 773-305-1666 SingleHop, LLC.
ATTN: Account Management
215 W. Ohio St. 5th Floor
Chicago, IL 60654

Also the domain was registered by GoDaddy.com on 4/15/2013. They are using GoDaddy for the registration and DNS which then points to SingleHop. That's very amateurish looking for a scam.

These are both US based companies which means law abiding and compliant usually. GoDaddy to my knowledge doesn't accept any anonymous form of payment so you may be able to get their identity through them. They do accept PayPal, though, and it's possible to buy blackmarket PayPal accounts.

The WHOIS lists a "john" in Thailand which is probably made up.

[Pale Phoenix]

You don't really need an attorney for most takedowns.

Do as lv426 recommended by sending a DMCA takedown notice to the hosting provider, and keep moving upstream until you get a satisfactory response. You can find each U.S. based company's copyright agent for notices here: http://www.copyright.gov/onlinesp/list/a_agents.html

That is generally the fastest way to get something taken down.

Incidentally, it doesn't appear as though you have registered your trademarks with the USPTO. You might consider registering as I've found it can make takedowns easier, especially when dealing with foreign hosting companies.

If the DMCA notices don't resolve it, you can attempt to get control of the domain with a WIPO action. Document their phishing attempts and you will likely prevail, but it won't happen overnight. http://www.wipo.int/amc/en/domains/

[escrow.ms]

Op, i have reported that site, domain will go down soon.

@Memorydealer here you go
http://who.is/whois/bitcoinestore.com

Domain suspended