SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Is it the latest horror of the world wide web or a deterrent for crime? It's a website that allows anonymous users to label any woman a potential prostitute just by posting her picture and phone number. And it gets even worse. if you want your information taken down from the site, it's going to cost you.
PotentialProstitutes.com claims that it's purpose is to make local communities aware of the threat of prostitutes in their area. But here's the problem: Any person can post a picture and information to the site. But it costs big bucks to get it off the site.
With the click of a mouse your information could end up on a website that makes you out to be a potential prostitute. A quick search on the site reveals 77 results for the Santa Barbara area, complete with names, pictures, and phone numbers. Santa Barbara Police Sergeant Riley Harwood had a look at the site and said he didn't recognize any of the faces as prostitutes that have had run-ins with the law.
Central Coast News called a number under the Santa Barbara area and spoke with a woman whose picture and information was posted on the site. She said she had no idea how her information was posted on the site or who posted it. She said she didn't care that her information was on there but added that she was not a prostitute.
The website makes it easy for anybody to post anonymously, but makes it difficult to remove the information. If you want to delete a profile that's in the database, it'll cost you $99.95. One attorney says it's difficult to fight back.
"Once an image is posted, if I understand it correctly, it becomes property of the website," says attorney Thomas Worthington. "And websites do have policies on requiring people who want things taken down."
Sergeant Harwood said the website is likely based overseas, and that would limit local law enforcement's ability should complaints come in regarding private information posted.
"Given that it would transcend likely state and even international borders, we would ultimately refer it to federal authorities and assist them any way we could," says Harwood.
Sergeant Harwood added that a lot of the pictures posted looked like they were from other adult services websites, and this website could actually be used for advertising prostitution instead of stopping it.
