The Internet's Most Hated Man, The Strange Story of Michael Crook

In online gamer jargon, Michael Crook is a "griefer", someone who causes grief to others through harassment. In recent years, his websites have provoked unbridled rage throughout the Internet.

Fox News sniffs out a story

Crook first gained notoriety when his website "ForsakeTheTroops.com" stated that American soldiers in Iraq deserved to die for enlisting. His site further described the soldiers as overpaid "pukes" and "scumbags". It came as no surprise when Crook's controversial views earned him an interview on the Fox News Network show, Hannity and Colmes.

Harassing bloggers

After Crook's Fox News appearance, critical bloggers began posting screen caps and video excerpts from the show. Crook then sent repeated DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) takedown notices to these bloggers, claiming copyright infringement. Of course, the copyright wasn't owned by Michael Crook at all. It was owned by Fox News.

The Craigslist "sting"

Crook's next infuriating online scheme involved a sex predator "sting" on the "casual encounter" classifieds section of Craigslist. He ran personal ads, posing as "Melissa", an 18-year-old female Las Vegas college student wanting to party with a "cool guy" and "trade pics." The responders to his bogus ads sent photos and private information, including real names, phone numbers, and email addresses. Some respondents even sent photos of their private parts.

After collecting all the information, Michael Crook published all responses, photos, and other private information on his website, "craigslist-pervert.org".

When confronted, Crook compared his craigslist site to Dateline's televised pedophile stings. Of course, unlike Dateline, Crook's decoy "Melissa" was 18, within the legal age of consent.

A side note: Michael Crook isn't an original. His craigslist caper was actually a copycat "sting" first done by another "hated" Internet personality, Jason Fortuny. Unlike Crook, Fortuny had the good sense not to launch follow-up harassments of his targets.

A specific case

According to The Las Vegas Sun, one of Crook's targets was a married man who had sent "Melissa" his photograph and phone number. After additional conversations with "Melissa", the man also revealed his address and the name of his employer. Crook then called his wife, the CEO of the company he worked for, and several corporate clients.

This married man was just one of several targets who Crook had followed-up with harassment beyond the Internet.

The apology

In 2007, Michael Crook settled a lawsuit filed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) on behalf of the bloggers who had been sent harassing takedown notices. As part of his settlement, Crook posted a video, publicly apologizing "to all bloggers, webmasters, and other individuals."

And, if you do a Google search, you'll see that Michael Crook is still one of the Internet's most hated individuals.

SOURCES:

"The Internet's Most Wanted", Nick Douglas, Valleywag, URL: (http://valleywag.com/tech/griefers/internets-most-wanted-a-rogues-gallery-231320.php)

http://men.style.com/details/features/full?id=content_5288

"On the Internet, Melissa might be a Crook", Abigail Goldman, Las Vegas, URL: (http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/sun/2006/oct/15/56678449.html)

http://www.eff.org/legal/cases/diehl_v_crook/stipulation_of_dismissal.pdf

http://www.eff.org/news/archives/2006_11.php#004976

EFF and Ten Zen Monkeys vs. Michael Crook", Jeff Diehl, 10 Zen Monkeys, URL: (http://10zenmonkeys.com/2006/11/01/eff-crook-dmca-lawsuit/)

"Unhinged scumbag of the year", Michelle Malkin, URL: (http://michellemalkin.com/2005/12/18/unhinged-scumbag-of-the-year/)