Feds want Austintown man to cooperate with 'revenge porn' website investigation
A government agency is asking a federal judge to force an Austintown man to cooperate with an investigation into a website that allegedly offered so-called “revenge porn”.
A government agency is asking a federal judge to force an Austintown man to cooperate with an investigation into a website that allegedly offered so-called “revenge porn”.
The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday petitioned the U.S. District Court to order Aniello “Neil” Infante to comply with the FTC's Civil Investigative Demand into the website MyEx.com.
According to the petition, Infante was an officer and agent for EMP Media Inc., of Las Vegas, which operated a website which investigators say “provides users a ready-made global platform to embarrass or harass others.”
The FTC says users of MyEx.com can post nude or sexually explicit pictures of others, typically without that individual's consent.
Investigators say the site allows users to provide personal information about the displayed individuals including their names, telephone numbers, postal and e-mail addresses, birth dates, and links to their profiles on social media.
“Users also have the option to tag the pictures with a predetermined array of descriptive—and some demeaning—epithets, including 'Bad in Bed,' 'Broke,' 'Cheater,' 'Gold Digger,' and 'Slut,'” according to the FTC's petition.
The FTC says it opened an investigation into MyEx.com after learning from consumer advocates that the website was often used for harassment and after receiving more than 100 consumer complaints from individuals who learned that their images had been posted on the site without their consent.
Investigators say Infante served as President, Director, Secretary and Treasurer of EMP Media from 2008 until the corporation was dissolved this past July.
According to the FTC's petition, Infante has failed to answer questions and has yet to comply with requests for documents to assist in the agency's investigation.
A transcript submitted by FTC Attorney Megan Cox notes that Infante failed to appear for a December 13, 2016 hearing in the office of the U.S. Attorney in Youngstown.
The FTC says it is acting under its authority to determine if people or businesses are engaging in deceptive or unfair practices related to consumer privacy and data security.
The FTC's memorandum of law in support of its petition may be seen below
