DOMAIN NAMES BEING SEIZED

Justice Dept. Tries New Tactic

Federal agents routinely seize property allegedly used in the commission of
a crime, anything from a drug dealer's car or speedboat to a hacker's computer.

In a series of raids in recent weeks, the Justice Department has extended
such grabs to property that might seem esoteric but worry civil
libertarians -- Internet domain names.

In one case, the government took over Web sites that it said peddled bongs,
roach clips, rolling papers and other paraphernalia used in the consumption
of illegal drugs.

Prosecutors also acquired, in a plea agreement, a site called isonews.com
whose owner was charged with selling special chips that let pirated titles
run on video-game consoles.

'Restrained' message

In the past, Web sites simply vanished after the computer servers that
hosted them landed in police property rooms. But in the recent cases,
visitors to pipesfor you.com, aheadcase.com and others are now greeted with
a message informing them that a Pennsylvania federal court has "restrained"
the sites at the request of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

The trend is alarming online civil-liberties groups and legal scholars, who
say the government's new tactic risks depriving people of valuable property
- -- their Internet storefronts and thus their livelihoods -- as electronic
commerce becomes more common.

"If you want to take down a Web site but simply confiscate the servers,
operators can always buy other servers," said Michael Overly, an attorney
specializing in computer law at Foley & Lardner. "But if they take the
domain name away, then they've put the person out of business."

Critics of the recent moves also say they fear the government could use the
method to spy on Web surfers who visit confiscated sites.

No Plans Announced

In announcing the indictment last week of 55 people for allegedly selling
drug paraphernalia on the Internet, Attorney General John Ashcroft said
several sites had been redirected to DEA servers and that prosecutors had
asked the court to redirect an additional "15 to 20 sites within the next
30 days."

The Justice Department did not return phone calls seeking comment on what
it plans to do with the sites and their visitor logs.

Among issues that remain unresolved is whether a domain name constitutes
property. In the past, domain-name registrars have sued to ensure that
their offerings are not considered property. Otherwise, Overly said, "they
would find themselves at the heart of no end of litigation."

Overly said the courts would ultimately decide the issue.

"The government has done many things over the years," he said, "that
ultimately turn out not to be legal."