'I Don't Know If It's A Scam Or A Crime, But It Hurts'

'I Don't Know If It's A Scam Or A Crime, But It Hurts'

By KOMO Staff

SEATTLE - She started a Web site to honor her murdered toddler. But now, a local mother says the site has been hijacked, and the hijackers are demanding a steep ransom.

It's the heartbreaking consequences of something called "cyber-squatting".

Margot Wetzel just can't believe the Web site honoring her dead daughter is gone.

"I don't know if it's a scam or a crime, but it hurts," she said.

18-month-old Charlotte Wetzel was murdered by her daycare provider Robin Johnson 7 years ago.

CharlotteWetzel.com chronicled a mother's grief and offered tips on preventing abuse.

But when Margot tried to renew the domain name, she discovered that someone else beat her to it.

Then, she got an e-mail demanding she pay $15,000 to get it back.

"Well they're basically holding it for ransom, right?" she said. "It's like, 'yeah, you can use it but we need some cash.' "

PC World columnist Stuart Johnston says it's called "cyber-squatting". Usually, cybersquatters buy up the names of successful businesses and then try to sell them back.

But Johnston says he's never seen anything like this.

"I haven't seen anything that's quite this heinous of someone taking a domain name that's so close to someone's heart," Johnston said.

We found out who bought the domain name -- they're called New Orleans Leftover Data Centers. We tried calling them to find out just what they're up to, but every time we called, we got the answering machine.

We also sent the company several emails and got no response.

"They just want to make money off people, they don't really care what the Web site is all about," Margot said.

Charlottewetzel.com will be up for renewal again in 2006. Margot says she'll be ready, hoping to beat these cyber squatters to the punch.

There are federal laws against cyber-squatting, but experts tell us they only apply to cases where the Web site was trademarked.

Icon
Current Temp 50 °F
Overcast
More Weather

Travel Times

Traffic

On Demand

Resources and info you need to prepare for the switch to DTV.

YouNews

This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.