WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- U.S. bloggers are targeting Web sites inside the United States used by al-Qaida and Islamist sympathizers.
The bloggers are using Internet means to convince service providers to discontinue being host for of the jihadi sites, The Washington Times reported Wednesday.
Aaron Weisburd, director of the Society for Internet Research and host of the Web site Haganah.us, said complaints lobbied against Internet service providers caused several pro-al-Qaida Web sites to be shut down just prior to the release of a tape featuring Osama bin Laden in August. He said the operation was effective and al-Qaida was forced to distribute the video directly to networks, rather than going through the Internet.
Weisburd cautioned against targeting Web sites with any information beyond low-level intelligence, however, warning that federal investigators could lose crucial evidence if an important site is shut down.
"Shutting down Web sites is a tactic, and done wisely in support of a particular objective, it can be a good thing," he said.
"Done blindly as an end in itself it only serves to breed a resistant pest, much like the overapplication of insecticide will do," Weisburd said.
