Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Breaking News: Another grim side of VT shootings emerges on Internet
Speculators hoping to cash in on the Virginia Tech shootings are rushing to register Internet domain names that hark to the day of violence
A grim side of the Virginia Tech shootings began to emerge on the Internet within minutes minutes of the shootings. Domain names related to the massacre were snatched up, some by those with good intentions, others by speculators hoping to cash in. They might sell those domains outright to other speculators, or they might place ads on the Web sites hoping to generate page views and clicks if people stumble upon them while searching for information.
Joseph Parker of Christiansburg, for example, registered "vtmurders.com" and "vtmurders.info," which he is offering to sell for $250,000 on his Web site, The Etrader. Ditto for "vtkillings.com" and "vtkillings.info." He also grabbed "choseng-hui.com" and "choseung-hui.info," which he's offering for $1 million -- "serious offers considered."
Other names registered in the minutes or hours after news of the shootings broke include these:
virginiatechshooting.com
virginiatechshooting.net
virginiatechshooting.org
virginiatechshooting.info
virginiatechshooting.us
vatechshooting.com
vatechshooting.net
vatechshooting.org
vatechshooting.info
vatechshooting.us
vatechshooting.biz
vtshooting.com
vtshooting.info
vatechmassacre.com
vatechmassacre.net
vatechmassacre.info
vatechmassacre.biz
vtmassacre.com
vtmassacre.net
vtmassacre.org
vtmassacre.info
virginiatechrampage.com
vatechrampage.com
vtrampage.com
virginiatechmurders.com
virginiatechmurders.net
virginiatechmurders.org
virginiatechmurders.info
virginiatechmurders.us
vatechmurders.com
vtmurders.com
hokieshootings.com
hokiemassacre.com
blacksburgshootings.com
