badmovies.org banned in my library

zombie no.one · December 24, 2007, 09:44:25 PM

I tried to access badmovies.org in my local library and a message came up saying "prohibited site due to extreme illegal activity detected"! I told the guys on the main desk that this site is okay because I didn't want them to think I was going in the library trying to access dodgy internet sites...two weeks later I tried again and it's still didn't let me on. I just thought I'd let you guys know this site's banned in my town's library...

LilCerberus · December 24, 2007, 10:13:26 PM

Everybody but me has moderator level access at wrir.org

zombie no.one · December 24, 2007, 10:25:44 PM

eh? I don't know wrir.org... I'm just talking about here...

Andrew · December 25, 2007, 07:16:10 PM

To my knowledge, no large filtering services (Net Nanny, Cyber Patrol, etc.) are blocking Badmovies.org by default.

Also, since this site operates completely within the letter of the law, the blocking message they are using concerns me. I do not condone or promote any sort of illegal activity here. If you forward me the address of the library, I have a standard letter that I can send them requesting more information. If you can, write down the exact text of the blocking message you are seeing.

zombie no.one · December 25, 2007, 09:09:57 PM

okay, next time I go in my library I'll get their e-mail address and PM it to you. maybe in a about week's time or when I next go in.

I already filled out a form for the library when the message came up for the first time - basically to say that I wasn't trying to access any type of illegal site - and I put in the "comments" section that there was no reason for this site to be banned etc, but then 2 weeks later the same message came up...

Mofo Rising · December 26, 2007, 12:18:06 AM

Quote from: depressed crack addict on December 24, 2007, 09:44:25 PM
I tried to access badmovies.org in my local library and a message came up saying "prohibited site due to extreme illegal activity detected"! I told the guys on the main desk that this site is okay because I didn't want them to think I was going in the library trying to access dodgy internet sites...two weeks later I tried again and it's still didn't let me on. I just thought I'd let you guys know this site's banned in my town's library...

Sounds like a crappy webfilter program to me. Nanny programs are usually knee-jerk concerns that are usually comically inept when filtering the "good" from the "bad". Breast cancer awareness sites are censored for nudity while Google images are allowed to run wild, for just one example.

I work in a library, so while I don't really think calling attention to the problem to your librarian will help, I also don't think it will hurt. Librarians spend most of their time dealing with irate patrons on printing issues and only block users for straight up porn. Sad to say, the only real concern, and it does happen, is users looking up child porn, which quickly becomes a matter for the police. A simple matter such as a mistakenly blocked website should be directed to whatever employee deals with that situation.

The best bet is to send the information to Andrew. "Extreme illegal activity" is a ridiculous warning, and hopefully can be taken care of quickly and quietly. If anything, this site does a service of warning for the worst movies ever made.

zombie no.one · December 29, 2007, 03:21:58 PM

^^^ yeah the filter probably is something way OTT and unnecessary but like I said I actually filled out a form to confirm that this site was "harmless" a few weeks ago and it's still blocked.

@Andrew check PM's, Ive sent you the info

Andrew · December 29, 2007, 10:24:04 PM

Thank you for the info. I found their mailing address too, so I will send both a email and snail mail.

Of course, any system can block a site if they choose, but saying "Illegal Activity" is not factual and damaging to the site's good name. If they wish to block it for "extreme content" then so be it (even though that is a bit inaccurate).

asimpson2006 · December 31, 2007, 12:11:06 PM

Something that could be harmless could easily be black listed. A last month, someone wanted their last name changed in our system. No biggie at all. We sent the name change up to our l2 group and nothing was sent back saying the change was taken care of. Here the whole problem was her last name was Porn and the email filter ad "porn" blacklisted.

Andrew · January 07, 2008, 08:53:33 AM

The Binford library already responded to my email. The gent who wrote me back informed me that the site is not specifically banned by the library, but is on the master ban list for IBM's Proventia Web Filter. I was able to verify that via the online URL check:

http://filterdb.iss.net/urlcheck/

The library did tell me that they have placed the site on their local "allow" list.

My concern is being listed as "Illegal Activities." "Violence/Extreme" is to subjective to worry about, though I will try to resolve that as well. I am following up with a certified letter to the Proventia Web Filter mailing address.

Andrew · January 08, 2008, 01:13:01 PM

Received a reply back from IBM already (their rep actually checked the site, pulled up the contact, and emailed me). They have removed "Illegal Activities" from the listing, which was my definite goal.

The site is still classified as "Violence/Extreme" and that I might not be able to change. I've sent a follow-up, asking what content is causing that category. If I can make acceptable changes to get that removed, I will do so; nothing major.

It's funny, because I checked a number of other sites that I would classify as much more extreme/violent and only found one out of about twenty blocked.