A friend and potential client contacted me this week regarding an internet site that was posting her phone number and telling young men to call her for a good time. The website is www.dirtyphonebook.com it allows users to post phone numbers and comments from anonymous usernames. The client contacted me regarding my ability to take down her phone number from the website.
A cease and desist email was submitted to both the owner of the website, the company that maintains the website, and the developer of the website, all of which has gone unanswered. A formal cease and desist letter was sent certified mail to the owner of the company to remove the phone number from the website. This too went unanswered.
My next option was to contact the FTC and the NYS Attorney General Office. The problem here is the speed at which action would occur next. The FTC first has to gather information as to how many people are complaining about this company and face the same problems as my client. I did a quick search on Google and this company is facing multiple complaints from people around the country. Some of the complaints are from parents whose children (under 18) have been contacted for phone sex. Which tells me this is actually a good case for the FTC to run with but again how long will it take?
The NYS Attorney General is looking into this case as well. I haven't dealt with the AG's office so again I am not sure what might come of this. In the meantime my client is still receive phone calls.
I also contacted an attorney friend of mine that has handled class actions in the past. It would seem possible with the amount of people already complaining about this website and how scattered the victims are around the country that this case may be handled as a class action.
Anyone who has faced a similar problem with a website or is interested in joining in a class action feel free to contact my firm.
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