Please help me

[parkbench]

Somebody has accessed my geocities website and changed the password. This person has turned my website into gay pornographic pictures of me and my friends. There was also an old AIM buddylist of mine up there and he's created an AIM screen name that is similar to mine, and started to send the link to my friends. This person has also posted my new email address on the site. Furthermore, he's put this old AIM buddylist on the site.

It bothers me a bit, but I'm dealing with it. The part that bothers me the most is that I've been applying for new jobs and put my email address on the resumes and I'm scared that the companies might find this with a google search. I have a feeling I know who it is, based on the type of content he/she put up, but I can't prove it. I've never intentionally hurt anyone but I have stopped talking to old friends because of differences recently.

I've emailed geocities to take it down but who knows when they'll comply, they have no phone # I can contact. I don't know where else to turn at this point. Is there anyway I can find out who did it? Trace an IP address somehow?

Feel free to respond or private message me, somebody is messing with my future

 

[parkbench]

I have a header on the email he sent me.

It shows an IP address where it originally went from the PC to Yahoo email. Is there anyway I can trace this IP to a person somehow? By calling a company or tricking him, etc?

If anyone doesn't believe me please email me or pm me, I need to figure out who's doing this to me!

 

[rneff50]

I dont even want to know where this person got "gay porn" pictures of you, but that is besides the point. If the person emailed you, how do you still not know who he/she is? What did the email say? Geocities should get back to you. If the IP address you have is for the computer that issued the email to you? You can use that to trace at least back to this person's ISP.

 

[parkbench]

The pix are Photoshop altered pictures, basically my head is cut and pasted onto various xxx pix.

My yahoo email address and therefore, Geocities web site password was stolen, and the email was sent from that email address. Therefore the email was sent from 'me' essentially.

The message source lists an IP address, and I think this may be the key to figuring out who did it. How can I trace this IP back to its ISP? Or who can I contact to get this information?

btw, yes I hope Geocities gets back to me!

Edit: The email's contents were simply a link to my website, and a profile of a new AIM screen name, very similar to mine, with my old buddy list in it. The person contacted me on IM today from this similar name and asked me how I liked the new website, then signed off.

 

[Matthias99]

Try a reverse DNS lookup:

http://remote.12dt.com/rns/

That should at least give you a TLD to start with -- send email about this to abuse and postmaster at that domain. Of course, if this person is not totally inept they would be using a proxy connection, but you can try. If you feel this is serious enough, you really might want to get the police involved, as they can do things like issuing subpoenas to get information from ISPs (which you'll have to do eventually anyway).

 

[parkbench]

Bingo! It comes up with a town name and provider of the perpetrator in contracted form.

It's still only narrowed down to two people but I have a SERIOUS feeling I know which of the two it is, all signs point to him!!

Thank you so much Matthias99!!

Anything further anybody can suggest? Is there anyway the cable modem provider will tell me his name or is there somebody I should complain to with my provider or his? Will a DNS reverse lookup hold up in court?

 

[parkbench]

I've successfully matched the IP Address to an offender.

One final important question:

Is there anyway to change a broadband IP Address after the fact? The reason I'm asking is because I want to settle this matter, with no litigation, but I want to be prepared in case the person tells me he's not going to take the site down.

If he IS able to change his IP Address, would I be able to prove that his former IP Address matched the one from the harassing yahoo email?

 

[Twista]

ya by isp logs and when he was using it ;p THINK OF THE RIAA. You can change ur ip by switchign your NIC on broadbane and getting a new mac addy simple.

 

[Matthias99]

Broadband IPs are set up (unless you specifically requested a static IP from the ISP) via DHCP, so they could in theory change at any time. His ISP would have the records indicating which cable modem had that IP at any given time, but they won't just *give* it to you -- you'd probably need a court order for that.

If you're really sure you know who it is, you should go to them and explain that you have evidence that they hacked your site -- and that if they don't take it down you'll go to the police and have them start investigating. It can be a *real* pain in the butt, though -- a lot of ISPs just won't care until you *do* get the police involved, and odds are you'll be low on your local police department's list of priorities.

If you have emails, etc. coming from what turns out to be this person's IP address, and you can get information out of the ISP and/or Yahoo/Geocities corroborating that, I would think that would be enough in court. But IANAL!

 

[Twista]

how can the police help for things on the internet, im confused, very. You can 9-11 and what say "my website was hacked?"

Thanks

 

[lucky9]

The local police will have someone that looks at this and will probably get the Feds involved if anything crossed state lines. They usually do. If I were you I'd prosecute this scum.:|

 

[lobadobadingdong]

Originally posted by: lucky9
The local police will have someone that looks at this and will probably get the Feds involved if anything crossed state lines. They usually do. If I were you I'd prosecute this scum.:|