The Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection (ASACP) is asking for help after the organization was hit with a spoof email attack Sunday evening.
The spoof email, which is signed by executive director Joan Irvine and refers to the organization as the Association of Sites Advocating Child Porn, threatens to report recipients for having child pornography on their computer. Concerned recipients have been emailing the ASACP since around 6 p.m. Sunday.
This is not the first spoof email attack the ASACP has had to deal with, but the first time negative connotations have been drawn in such an attack.
"It's never been this horrific, where they've sent out something calling us the Association of Sites Advocating Child Porn and including our mailing address, which I just put up last week," Irvine told AVNOnline.com. "Instead of saying, 'stop spamming us,' people are saying, 'oh, my god!'
"People within out industry know it's a spoof, but the people who are receiving it don't know. If this goes further it could cause us to be blocked. It has more ramifications that we probably even realize."
Irvine said the ASACP has contacted the abuse and legal departments of companies who have been hit, requesting the header information of the email so researchers can investigate and forward the information to the FBI. They have also contacted their own email provider to notify them of the situation.
"When we find out who sent this out, we'll consult with our attorney," Irvine said.
"It's frustrating. We've just announced the new name, we're becoming more effective and somebody obviously doesn't like that."
Anyone who has received the email or may have any useful information on its origins is being urged to contact Irvine at [email protected].
The email reads as follows.
Dear sir/madam,
We are with the Association of Sites Advocating Child Porn (ASACP) and it has been brought to our attention by an anonymous patron that you have illegal pornography stored on your computer\'s hard drive.
We have obtained vital information about you and we will report you to your local authorities unless you contact us immediately and state your case. You can contact us by using the following options:
Our mailing address: ASACP
5042 Wilshire Blvd.,
#540 Los Angeles, CA 90036
Our email address: [email protected]
You have 3 business days to contact us before we are forced to report you to your local authorities. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Joan Irvine, Executive Director Association of Sites Advocating Child Porn (ASACP) http://www.asacp.org
