(WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) — Nordic telecommunications provider TeliaSonera (www.teliasonera.com) cut the connections of Latvian web host Real Host last week after investigators alleged that it hosted sites distributing botnet software for infecting personal computers and coordinating the theft of financial information, according to a report from the Financial Times.
Researchers Andrew Martin and Jart Armin claimed that some Real Host sites tried to infect visitors through vulnerabilities in Adobe Flash, and others sold stolen credit card data, according to the Financial Times. They also said some sites also controlled parts of the Zeus botnet, which siphons off banking and credit card data and login information for financial websites.
TeliaSonera told Junik, Real Host’s upstream provider, to either cut the web host or face sanctions itself after learning from investigators that sites associated with Real Host “were engaged in malicious network activity,” which violated its terms of use, the Financial Times reported. Still, such drastic action by an ISP against a hosting company is rare.
When do-gooders in the online community pressured upstream providers to cut off arguably the world’s largest source of spam at the time, McColo, the action was met by wide praise. Unilateral action, however, is not without its criticism. When the US federal trade commission shut down 3FN for allegedly knowingly hosting, and actively participating in the distribution of spam, child pornography, and other harmful electronic content, companies threatened legal action against the government for its brash action that may have harmed legitimate businesses.
