After being pulled offline by a DDoS and suspected hacker attack, nearly two weeks ago news broke that Demonoid’s servers had been shutdown in the Ukraine.
The action followed a request from Interpol, with the music group IFPI later taking credit for the takedown. While some of Demonoid’s users still expect the site to reopen with a new hosting provider, a comeback appeared less likely when the three main Demonoid domains were listed for sale last week.
Demonoid.me, Demonoid.com and Demonoid.ph were put up for sale at the popular domain name and website marketplace Sedo, but as it turned out, not for long. Two of the three domain names have now been de-listed due to legal issues.
Anyone wishing to buy the .PH or .COM domain now see the following message;
“Due to possible legal issues associated with this domain, Sedo is not able to offer services for the domain. Please consider selecting an alternative domain.”
Interestingly, the .ME domain which acted as the primary Demonoid address for more than a year, has not been de-listed by Sedo.
Banned over “legal issues”
We contacted Sedo who informed us that while they take a neutral position in copyright issues, the company has an obligation to protect its users.
“In addition to processing notice-takedown complaints from third-party rights holders, Sedo also employs an internal listing suspension policy when we’re made materially aware of a domain that is either subject to ownership dispute or under investigation by relevant law enforcement,” a Sedo spokesperson told TorrentFreak.
“This is done to protect potential buyers from purchasing a domain where its use and ownership could be threatened after the purchase for unforeseen circumstances. In such situations, the listing user is informed and once they can provide documentation demonstrating the domain’s clear title, the listing will be reinstated.”
While Sedo said it “can’t go into specifics”, the company suggested that no third-party or law enforcement group had ordered the de-listing of the domains. Sedo did not respond to our question why the main .ME domain is still for sale.
At the moment TorrentFreak hasn’t heard from Demonoid as to why the domains are being sold, or what this means for the site’s future. If there is any.
