Public library domain name displays an Adult Toy Store

Citizens of Hampton, commonwealth of Virginia are facing a weird situation for a week. The residents of the city are unable to access their Public Library’s online portal. It’s not that the website is down, rather it points to an Adult Toy Store!

People of the city were intrigued when they clicked on their public library domain HamptonPublicLibrary.org. Instead of the usual portal of the library, an adult toys store was on display. It read, ‘Hampton Adult Toy Store’. Beneath it read, perhaps the tagline, ‘Fifty Shades freed’. The Toy Store also presents different articles about pleasure toys. However, it isn’t clear as to how this was even possible?

When we checked the WhoIs information of the domain, the last update was on 2nd December 2021. The name was hidden by the Privacy Protect feature. However, the last update has been 9 months ago, this means that it isn’t a case of lapsed domain being registered by someone else.

There hasn’t been any official response to the situation and the domain name even after a week still points to the toy store. The parents in the city are worried what would have been if instead of them, their children accidentally clicked on the portal.

Adult Hampton

Discussion

Mark Beck

January 24, 2023

Research so far shows that someone impersonated a city employee, contacted our domain registration company, and transferred the old URL. A sticker now covers up the naughty site on any newly issued library card while the city works to write an ending suitable for all ages.

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David Blake

February 19, 2023

A person with a Gmail address, not a Hampton.gov email account, was able to convince the company that controls the site’s registration that they were a city employee, according to McCormick. This person, whom the city has been unable to identify or contact, apparently paid the registration fee and was able to redirect the URL away from the library’s current site to the adult store’s page.

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Larry Colt

March 4, 2023

The residents of Hampton, Virginia are facing a bizarre situation where their public library’s online portal is redirecting to an adult toy store. The issue remains unresolved, and parents are concerned about the potential impact on their children. It’s essential for the authorities to investigate and resolve this issue quickly. This highlights the significance of domain management and cybersecurity.

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