First of all, I would like to say it's been hell trying to get this site back up, due to server issues, database issues, bluehost, & work schedule. Thanks to everyone who has helped tremendously (nck) & to those who provided me with hosting (argo).
Secondly, adarq.org will not be bullied by anyone. Adarq.org is a performance website, dedicated to providing effective strength & conditioning information, where everyone's opinion is welcome. People on this site have opinions, which will NEVER be censored. Adarq.org supports free speech, there is no ruling hand that will ban a member just because what they say is perhaps unpopular to the rest of the forum. If a public figure is disappointed with someone(s) opinion on this forum, I urge them to join our site and defend themselves. Adarq.org only has one agenda, to provide an open forum that allows people to discuss various topics in a motivating environment. In order to maintain that viability, I will do whatever it takes.
Thirdly, I apologize to adarq.org members for choosing bluehost as my hosting. I never minded bluehost's actual hosting ability, but their failure to go to bat for the consumer is pathetic. Just because someone has a lawyer, doesn't mean their allegations have any merit, such is the case with Adam Linkenauger. Just because he says adarq.org is guilty of "libel" and "slander", and "publication of private information", doesn't mean it is true. Apparently, his name alone is "private information" according to bluehost. How that is possible, I will never know. Adam Linkenauger has a website, multiple products, videos, articles, and has even signed up for this very site using his actual name (AdamLinkenauger). His allegation of "publication of private information" is absurd. For example, even his phone number is public. In fact, if you wish to voice your opinion over Adam's pathetically unethical attack on adarq.org, here is a screenshot he himself makes publicly available:
I'm not asking anyone to call him, people are free to do whatever they want. If he wants to whine & complain about people calling him, he shouldn't make his number publicly available. Further proof he is a public figure.
Anyway..
Now, on to the sequence of events.
Before I start, I would like to show you a private message I received from Adam Linkenauger on facebook.
Adam Linkenauger
Hey Andrew,
I just got back from visiting my family to what seems to be some fireworks...
I asked my legal rep a couple days ago to get with you about removing some of the libel and slander against me on your site (ask you and see if you would, not force anything on you).
I figured he would email you and talk it over, and not go a legal route. I did not wish for this to happen whats so ever, and was really disappointed when I found out what had happened.
In no way did I want your site to be taken down, period. And have personally contacted Bluehost about returning it to its original state. They have agreed to do so on my word.
I think your site is a good resource for athletes, in which a lot rely on it, though a little different from my type of site haha, and I respect you as a trainer, and don't want to see us feud over this.
I don't want this to turn into a legal matter, as I know you don't either because honestly no one wins in those situations, and trust me that's the last option.
I just want people to not "name call" or make assumptions about me and my program who don't know me nor have seen my program to begin with. I've been training athletes for 8 years now, and put more into my program than 99% of any other trainers online, and I think you know that.
There was a lot of that going on. Opinions are cool, but the assumptions/lies are what bothered me (I'm sure you agree this is fair)
As there were over 1000 counts of my name being used inappropriately and in a libel setting.
Let me know if that's cool, and I'll call Bluehost and get you going asap. I don't want a feud, it's a waste of time for us both, and I def. don't want to have to do the whole lawsuit crap, so I'm sure we can respectfully resolve this.
Again, I apologize for this going in this direction as it was not meant too at all, and would like to fix this asap. If you agree to help monitor the comments of me and my program on your site in fair judgement
(meaning if they have experience with myself/my product and aren't happy, cool, say their opinion in a respectful manner, but if they don't know me, and call me a name because they think its the cool thing to do, that's just not right)
then I will retract the complaints made on my behalf and get your site up and running asap.
Hope you see this as a fair deal, as I am just asking for people to hold a fair opinion of me... and again, nothing personal, I NEVER wanted your site to go down whatsoever, I'm well aware of the athletes and their journals.
Hoping for your "ok" so I can get you reinstated.
Thanks man, and hope all is well.
Adam
Not much to say about that comment really.. it's littered with bully attempts and lies. It's borderline "Blackmail" => "Take my name off your site and i'll get your site reinstated with bluehost, otherwise your site is done". None of which has any justification by a law or court. Instead, he uses false claims of slander, libel, and publication of private information to scare bluehost into shutting my account down, then tries to play Mr. Nice Guy buy giving me an ultimatum on how to restore my website. If anyone should be facing legal action, it should be Adam Linkenauger.
Oh, and him getting my facebook ToS'd:
On October 4th I received an email from
legal@bluehost.com regarding a Term's of Service (ToS) violation. Here's is the sequence of events:
My response:
from andrew darqui
andrew.darqui@gmail.comto
support@bluehost.com,
legal@bluehost.comdate Tue, Oct 4, 2011 at 12:21 PM
subject Re: About your pure-dedication.com bluehost account
mailed-by gmail.com
hide details Oct 4 (4 days ago)
Hi, I am very confused by this TOS violation. "Adam Linkenauger" is a public figure, who he himself even signed up on my site and discussed various issues with people. He even provided my site with a testimonial. I am unsure what course of action I need to go in order to keep my site's data in tact. References to his name should not be an issue because he himself is a public figure who markets himself on the internet.
Is there any way to contest this TOS violation, to give me more time to resolve this issue? It would be similar to having a ToS Violation for talking about "President Obama" on a discussion forum. No personal information has been disclosed about Adam Linkenauger that he doesn't already disclose himself.
Thanks,
Andrew
Their response:
from Legal Department
legal@bluehost.comto
andrew.darqui@gmail.comdate Tue, Oct 4, 2011 at 2:03 PM
subject Re: [#MBE-52385-117] Re: About your pure-dedication.com bluehost account
mailed-by bluehost.com
Important mainly because of the people in the conversation.
hide details Oct 4 (4 days ago)
Hello,
The Terms of Service allow for individuals to specify whether or not they give permission for their information to be used on sites hosted on our servers. While Mr. Linkenauger may be a public figure, he has indicated that he does not give permission for his name or other identifying information to be used on your website. To use your analogy, the Terms would also prevent you from using "President Obama" on your site, but Mr. Obama (or his legal representative) would need to make the actual complaint before we would take action on it.
There is no way to contest this particular violation, sorry. Mr. Linkenauger has indicated to us that he does not give permission for you to use his information on your site, so it must be removed in order to remain in compliance with the Terms of Service.
Legal Department
1958 S 950 E
Provo, Ut. 84606
V: (888) 401-HOST | F: 801-765-1992
Most questions can be answered by articles in our knowledgebase
Knowledgebase:
http://helpdesk.bluehost.com/index.php/kb/My response:
from andrew darqui
andrew.darqui@gmail.comto Legal Department <
legal@bluehost.com>
date Tue, Oct 4, 2011 at 2:30 PM
subject Re: [#MBE-52385-117] Re: About your pure-dedication.com bluehost account
mailed-by gmail.com
hide details Oct 4 (4 days ago)
Thanks for the feedback. So when Mr. Linkenauger signed up for my website, using his name, and made posts on my website, this does not imply he gave permission for us to use his name?
http://www.adarq.org/forum/profile/?u=287Name: AdamLinkenauger
Posts: 6 (0.009 per day)
Position: Newbie
IP: <removed>
Hostname:
<removed>
Date Registered: October 31, 2009, 12:43:40 AM
Last Active:
Email:
link@vertfreak101.comHow can someone sign up for a discussion forum, chat, make themselves a part of the site, then go back and legally try to remove themselves from the site?
I am still confused on one matter, the term "private information":
PROHIBITED USES
5.Private Information and Images. Subscribers may not post or disclose any personal or private information about or images of children or any third party without the consent of said party (or a parent's consent in the case of a minor
What is the definition of "private"? I don't see how using his name, as a public figure, violates any privacy issue? My site does not disclose any information that is not already known and provided by Adam Linkenauger himself.
January 04, 2011, 04:30:12 PM
Sorry for the messed up formatting.
Thanks,
Andrew
Another email I sent, right after, regarding Adam's terms he agreed to when he signed up for adarq.org:
from andrew darqui
andrew.darqui@gmail.comto Legal Department <
legal@bluehost.com>
date Tue, Oct 4, 2011 at 2:46 PM
subject Re: [#MBE-52385-117] Re: About your pure-dedication.com bluehost account
mailed-by gmail.com
hide details Oct 4 (4 days ago)
When he registered for my site (adarq.org/pure-dedication.com), he was presented with these terms & clicked "I agree":
http://www.adarq.org/forum/register/Here is the terms he agreed to:
"You agree, through your use of this forum, that you will not post any material which is false, defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, vulgar, hateful, harassing, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, threatening, invasive of a person's privacy, adult material, or otherwise in violation of any International or United States Federal law. You also agree not to post any copyrighted material unless you own the copyright or you have written consent from the owner of the copyrighted material. Spam, flooding, advertisements, chain letters, pyramid schemes, and solicitations are also forbidden on this forum.
Note that it is impossible for the staff or the owners of this forum to confirm the validity of posts. Please remember that we do not actively monitor the posted messages, and as such, are not responsible for the content contained within. We do not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information presented. The posted messages express the views of the author, and not necessarily the views of this forum, its staff, its subsidiaries, or this forum's owner. Anyone who feels that a posted message is objectionable is encouraged to notify an administrator or moderator of this forum immediately. The staff and the owner of this forum reserve the right to remove objectionable content, within a reasonable time frame, if they determine that removal is necessary. This is a manual process, however, please realize that they may not be able to remove or edit particular messages immediately. This policy applies to member profile information as well.
You remain solely responsible for the content of your posted messages. Furthermore, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless the owners of this forum, any related websites to this forum, its staff, and its subsidiaries. The owners of this forum also reserve the right to reveal your identity (or any other related information collected on this service) in the event of a formal complaint or legal action arising from any situation caused by your use of this forum.
You have the ability, as you register, to choose your username. We advise that you keep the name appropriate. With this user account you are about to register, you agree to never give your password out to another person except an administrator, for your protection and for validity reasons. You also agree to NEVER use another person's account for any reason. We also HIGHLY recommend you use a complex and unique password for your account, to prevent account theft.
After you register and login to this forum, you will be able to fill out a detailed profile. It is your responsibility to present clean and accurate information. Any information the forum owner or staff determines to be inaccurate or vulgar in nature will be removed, with or without prior notice. Appropriate sanctions may be applicable.
Please note that with each post, your IP address is recorded, in the event that you need to be banned from this forum or your ISP contacted. This will only happen in the event of a major violation of this agreement.
Also note that the software places a cookie, a text file containing bits of information (such as your username and password), in your browser's cache. This is ONLY used to keep you logged in/out. The software does not collect or send any other form of information to your computer."
I am not trying to be rude or anything like that, but here is why I am trying to defend my website. My website is a strength & conditioning website, which discusses topics regarding how to improve sports performance. Adam Linkenauger is a well known "scammer" & "internet coach". He signed up for my site & agreed to the terms. Even if he did not, I am not disclosing any private information about him. People on my site, use his "vertical jump program". So any mention to that program, in fact refers to Adam Linkenauger. Absolutely none of the information we present, is private.
If Adam Linkenauger were to succeed in getting his name removed, it would not be because I violated ToS. I would please ask that bluehost consider my side and what I presented, removing his name from my site would take a while and I work etc, but I don't see how he has a valid case against my website. Please consider my side and extend the "48 hours rule" so we can discuss this and get this resolved.
I love bluehost's service and have done nothing to violate my Terms of Service.
"The Terms of Service allow for individuals to specify whether or not they give permission for their information to be used on sites hosted on our servers. '"
He gave specific permission when he signed up for my website & agreed to the forum's ToS.
Thanks,
Andrew
Bluehost's response:
from Bluehost ToS Team
tos@bluehost.comto
andrew.darqui@gmail.comdate Tue, Oct 4, 2011 at 3:16 PM
subject Re: Re: About your pure-dedication.com bluehost account
mailed-by bluehost.com
Important mainly because of the people in the conversation.
hide details Oct 4 (4 days ago)
Unfortunately this individual would not be considered a public figure. This individual has the right to decide who can post his personal identifying information online and as he has officially requested that this information be removed we must require that you remove this information from your site.
Terms of Service Compliance Department
1958 South 950 East
Provo, UT 84606
P: 888.401.4678 Option 5 | F: 801.765.1992
Most questions can be answered by articles in our knowledgebase or our NEW forum!
Forum:
http://www.bluehostforum.comKnowledgebase:
https://www.bluehost.com/cgi/helpMy response after they cut my site within hours of issuing me the 48 hour warning:
from andrew darqui
andrew.darqui@gmail.comto Legal Department <
legal@bluehost.com>
date Wed, Oct 5, 2011 at 12:20 AM
subject Re: [#MBE-52385-117] Re: About your pure-dedication.com bluehost account
mailed-by gmail.com
hide details Oct 5 (3 days ago)
Hi, my website has been disabled. You guys told me I had within 48 hours to remove the violation before my site would be disabled.
"Please remove any violations from your website hosted on our servers within 48 hours.
Legal Department
Legal@bluehost.com"
Now my users have no idea what is happening to my site.
Bluehost's response:
from Legal Department
legal@bluehost.comto
andrew.darqui@gmail.comdate Thu, Oct 6, 2011 at 6:00 PM
subject Re: [#MBE-52385-117] Re: About your pure-dedication.com bluehost account
mailed-by bluehost.com
Important mainly because you often read messages with this label.
hide details Oct 6 (1 day ago)
Hello,
Thank you for contacting the Legal Department.
We investigated why your account was deactivated in advance of the 48 hour deadline -- It appears that we had received a complaint of a new post on the site referencing the name "Adam Linkenauger" that was created after the warning was sent. In view of this, the Terms of Service team had determined that the account had further violated the Terms of Service and therefore shut down the account. The account still has cPanel and FTP access in order for you to retrieve your content, and you'll still be able to get a refund of the remaining time on the account once you contact billing to cancel.
Bluehost's last email from tos@bluehost:
from
tos@bluehost.comto
andrew.darqui@gmail.comdate Wed, Oct 5, 2011 at 12:32 AM
subject About your pure-dedication.com bluehost account
mailed-by bluehost.com
hide details Oct 5 (3 days ago)
Hello,
This is a follow up email regarding your account being deactivated. We regret to inform you that we can no longer provide you hosting services for your websites. This is a notification that you will need to find a new hosting provider. The account is currently set to be deleted in 14 days.
FTP and cPanel access is still currently enabled for you to retrieve your files and databases. Please contact our billing department once the account has been closed to ensure a pro-rated refund.
We've found that personal identifying information relating to "Adam Linkenauger" was posted again in the following URL.
http://www.adarq.org/forum/progress-journals-experimental-routines/adarq-org-shutting-down-soon-for-a-few-days-until-i-get-new-hosting/msg62562/?topicseen#msg62562Looking at the account history, this doesn't appear to be the first offense relating to this issue.
Additionally, we've received complaints regarding the content of your website having Profanity, and Obscene content. This is listed in our terms of service as a Prohibited Use.
Please let us know if you have any other questions or concerns.
Thank You,
Terms of Service Compliance Department
1958 South 950 East
Provo, UT 84606
P: 888.401.4678 Option 5 | F: 801.765.1992
Most questions can be answered by articles in our knowledgebase or our NEW forum!
Forum:
http://www.bluehostforum.comKnowledgebase:
https://www.bluehost.com/cgi/helpThank you,
BlueHost.com Terms of Service Compliance
http://www.bluehost.comFor support go to
http://helpdesk.bluehost.com/Toll-Free: (888) 401-4678
Ok, you get the idea, i'm bored of making this thread. Hope everyone now knows why we were down, and why they unfortunately could not update their journals & discuss matters of the day like usual.
-- adarq
