Judges fear dangers of online 'rat' database

["Richard M. Smith" <rms () computerbytesman com>]

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2006/11/30/judges_fe
ar_dangers_of_online_rat_database?mode=PF
 
Judges fear dangers of online 'rat' database

By Matt Apuzzo, Associated Press Writer  |  November 30, 2006

WASHINGTON --Police and prosecutors are worried that a Web site claiming to
identify more than 4,000 informants and undercover agents will cripple
investigations and hang targets on witnesses.

The Web site,  <http://whosarat.com/> WhosaRat.com, first caught the
attention of authorities after a Massachusetts man put it online and named a
few dozen people as turncoats in 2004. Since then, it has grown into a
clearinghouse for mug shots, court papers and rumors.

Federal prosecutors say the site was set up to encourage violence, and
federal judges around the country were recently warned that witnesses in
their courtrooms may be profiled online.

"My concern is making sure cooperators are adequately protected from
retaliation," said Chief Judge Thomas Hogan, who alerted other judges in
Washington's federal courthouse. He said he learned about the site from a
federal judge in Maine.

The Web site is the latest unabashedly public effort to identify witnesses
or discourage helping police. "Stop Snitching" T-shirts have been sold in
cities around the country and popular hip-hop lyrics disparage or threaten
people who help police.

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