By now, most of you might have heard of the Boy Bastos news and the search warrant made by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Mark Verzo’s house earlier. Mark is the owner of the site BoyBastos.com and also a blogger who owns a blog network. The portal is currently down as instructed by the authorities.
I won’t talk about any legalese here as I’m not in authority to discuss those issues. From my point of view, and having dealt with people from the NBI before on a similar situation, here are my tips to avoid the same treatment from them.
- Don’t insult or taunt Loren, or anyone with political power, authority, clout or influence for that matter. You don’t want to be on the receiving end of their dark half. I think Mark’s situation got worse because he was challenging the senator to get him.
- Clean up your act. If you think you’re a little guilty or in the borderline, best remove them from your site and issue a no-cache command on search engines. Just hope they didn’t make screen shots or cached copies of the offending materials.
- Anonymity is not absolute. You can hide behind layers of proxy or veils of internet protection and still be traceable to a certain degree. Someone, somewhere will be able to track you down somehow. They could always go to your provider and threaten them to give out your personal information. Yahoo! did that in China. So did Microsoft, AOL and Google — with proper government pressure.
- Check all your nicknames, handles, emails, pictures if they reveal your real identity. A Friendster account, LinkedIN, MySpace, Facebook can giveaway vital information to reveal your true name, contact information and even address.
- Put up a disclaimer and a Terms of Use on your site. Have it checked with a lawyer or someone expert in that area. Also add an Adult Content Warning for visitors.
- Block certain IP segments. Most government offices have assigned static IP ranges. You can make it harder for them to investigate you if you block IP segments from your site. If they don’t know any better, they’d think your site is down and won’t bother re-checking.
- You have the right to remain silent. Use that right always. Anything you say can and will be used against you. Don’t even bother responding to any demand letter — they could use it as evidence later on.
- Pull out your own list of networks — sometimes, it’s a game of who knows who. Let’s admit it — in the Philippines, things get done faster if you’re way up there (or knows someone) in the food chain.
- Here’s a trick I learned from the movie Sword Fish — diversion. Create multiple fake names, multiple fake addresses, multiple online accounts, and even fake pictures and make them as realistic as possible. If they’ll be searching for you online, they’ll be swamped with different and conflicting names and address. That could buy you some time to withdraw all your money and fly to the Cayman Islands or some country where there’s no extradition treaty with the Philippines.
- Get yourself a good lawyer. That’s the best advise I could give anybody.
Yes, we can always claim freedom of expression and the lack of provisions in the penal code for such internet activities, still we can’t avoid the fact that bullying is one trick people in high places have mastered over the years.
This reminds me of an old and interesting movie — The People vs. Larry Flynt. Michael points to a link in the forums for more details.
So, who’s next?
Twitter: momblogger
says:
@reyna elena- honey, I assume you know what a dictator is. I live through 14 years of martial law (I’m 50 now) and the dictator (from 1972 till 1986) didn’t even have a search warrants to confiscate things/search from suspected communists or subversives. Mark was not even arrested. He was just invited for questioning.
News reports said there was a search warrant
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/59587/(Update)-NBI-nabs-boybastoscom-alleged-operator-in-Ayala-Alabang-raid
noemi, sweetheart: trust me, i lost a lot of friends during the dictatorship but a senator ordering the arrest of anybody is very reminiscent of martial law egalement dictatorship.
i understand there is search warrant: sure there was a warrant, but explain to me sweetheart coz i just don’t git it what was HIS crime? he pissed off Loren?
also: who are you? are you LOREN LEGARDA?
you blanketed the internet with your trackbacks to the warrior lawyer – you must must just be looking for traffic?
[...] In the Philippine blogosphere, more links and commentary about the fate of Mark Verzo; take Basang Panaginip’s link roundup, and the Warrior Lawyer’s enumeration of what Philippine laws Mr. Verzo may have broken. Read Yugatech’s 10 Ways to avoid the Boy Bastos Treatment. [...]
wala bang magagawa ang mga blogger about dito? wala man lang bang support? petition for boy bastos – Mark Verzo?
[...] Before we go on an all out war, let’s review the facts and the apparent misinformation that’s been going around the blogosphere. [...]
Twitter: momblogger
says:
@reyna elena- read yuga’s entry carefully on http://www.yugatech.com/blog/blogosphere/here-lies-the-misinformation/
There was NO ARREST.
Noemi, it’s not an ARREST, just being “INVITED”, who are we fooling here? It’s like saying – it’s not a PARTY, it’s just a GET TOGETHER.
LET ME ASK YOU AGAIN? WHAT WAS THE CRIME?
FACT of the matter is LOREN was pissed that’s why she got HIM ARRESTED… eerr “INVITED”.
Trying to test the waters??! Must be so nice to feel the POWER, eh?
[...] Boy Bastos was being violated by the government especially after I saw the name Loren Legarda on this particular blog post by Abe wherein Abe said, “Don’t insult or taunt Loren…” – this made me [...]
Op,
Go to megamall, 4th floor, maraming smut doon. Painted pictures of totally nude women, maski bata pwedeng tumingin. Fifty years ago, a Filipino writer was put in jail because she wrote about a lewd act in her short story. It wasn’t even that graphic. Until now, there was no court decision to reverse that.
My point is, the arrest was dictated by a Senator who got pissed. As for values and immoral conduct and obscenity. I’ll have you know, it takes a priest and a high-ranking public official to dictate what is obscene. Ikaw, ako, si Abe, lahat tayo di pwedeng mag paaresto nang taong bastos, maski obvious na bastos pa sya.
At Pp3 inulit ulit mo lang ang argument at hindi mo naintindihan ang argument ko. Tagalugin ko na lang: Loren is a responsible Senator and has to act responsibly and not confuse complicated issues like Internet porn. Hell, she’s supposed to champion cyber laws in congress. When she had Verzo arrested, she wasn’t acting responsibly, and she confused issues. It’s even been made more confusing by the NBI who “arrested” “invited” Verzo when Verzo wasn’t supposed to be “arrested” or “invited.” May bagong law din dapat dito sa mga invitation-invitation na to. Dapat may lawyer talaga even if you just accepted the invitation at walang arrest. (I don’t understand why Verzo’s mother let the NBI take her son.) Wala ngang arrest eh, ba’t ka sasama?
Laws regarding Internet publications have yet to be pushed to Congress (for example, eh kung may welcome page naman ang adult site). Law regarding obscenity have yet to be clarified (we are a Catholic nation and hence everything that is immoral and obscene to Catholics is illegal. Tama ba to sa inyo?). Article 201 is a stupid law. Ginagamit lang yan nang mga pulitiko at mga nanghihingi nang “tong.”
Lastyly “But at the end of the day, a woman is violated.”
Maybe you should watch more porn as you are confused. If you’ve ever seen prostitutes begging a foreigners to pay them for sex, you wouldn’t say that a woman is violated in prostitution or in porn. I don’t know if you’re a woman Op3 but don’t ever presume to speak for all women.
Well Noemi, dahling, do we have any other definition of ARREST and INVITATION?
here’s the link: http://www.basapa.com/a-duck-by-any-other-name/
I think MUG SHOT equals ARREST. Can you check your legal binders?
I like the duck explanation better!
[...] now, you probably have read and heared the story of Boy Bastos. Well, I was drawn to the 10 point bulletin by Yuga and it was there that I was Touched by an Angel. Angelic Mom, was teaching me about the [...]
@ Reyna Elena – LOL LOL LOL ROFL. What a witty queen you are LOL (as the robot says: Clap Clap Clap!!!
I had several mugshots and fingerprints with the NBI too. It was not for an arrest warrant but for travel clearance.
Porn is prevalent…and it’s a choice.
Even before the internet, the tabloids conquer the porn world.
It’s flaunted on the streets where all walkersby feast on it in the form of pirated DVDs and VCDs.
The internet is out of control. The streets should be the ones controlled…but the government cannot do what needs to be done. VRB is weak. The local government is weak. One time I saw the VRB group raided a streetful of pirated discs…but what happened? Did they solve the problem? No! The next day, it’s just like the previous day, only, VRB is somewhere else…THERE SHOULD BE VRB IN EVERY LOCALITY TO MAKE THIS WORK.
As for the internet, no one can stop it! The poison is there but every responsible person will not take that poison! The family, the parents, should be the responsible ones KEEPING THE POISON AWAY FROM CHILDREN!
IF NO ONE WILL ENTERTAIN porn sites, will it stay? THE FACT IS A HEFTY LOT DO WANT THOSE PORN SITES!
ANOTHER FACT IS the accused and the accuser are getting free airwaves…but it is the aspiring president of the Philippines is riding on the popularity of the other.
Both of them are wrong. But what are we going to do about it?
If she concentrated on making the Meralco PPA lower, perhaps she would be President.
That’s what I think.
They actually allowed porn ad on primetime TV here http://www.pepster.net/2007/08/23/dance-group-brand-name-gone-bad/
[...] yet to formally charge Mark Verzo of violation of the law, if any. 2. Bloggers are now confused if Mark Verzo was arrested or invited. or was it mainstream media that confused us with the semantics? Mr. Verzo was not arrested but [...]
“I had several mugshots and fingerprints with the NBI too. It was not for an arrest warrant but for travel clearance.”
As Cat has already explained here, a mugshot is highly irregular if you’re just there “by invitation”. Maybe we should get more lawyers’ opinions on this before we rashly conclude that fingerprinting and mugshots are SOP for those who are invited for questioning.
No NEED for lawyers Micketymoc! (Numero TrentaDos), we could just invite SOME ANGELIC explanations instead of retreating from the dark corners of twitter and indulge in character assasination – u know what i mean?
I am pissed at those wannabe ANGELS!
I just asked 6 independent practicing lawyers, 5 of them says there’s no apparent sign he was indeed arrested. The other says it could be a warratless arrest made during the execution of the seach warrant.
There is something wrong here, IMO. I feel Loren is somewhere here doing damage control…from possible ire of bloggers and webmasters.
” Don’t insult or taunt Loren, or anyone with political power, authority, clout or influence for that matter.”
I guess this won’t be heard by bloggers with balls and backbones, IMO.
Mocs,
I agree with you!!!
In my case, somebody is trying to taunt me by posting a comment and leaving the senator’s signature and i know that the senator won’t even spend time in my blog. Someone is out there to taunt!
http://reynaelena.com/2007/09/10/loren-legarda-is-that-you/
I don’t know what Mark Verzo did to Loren to aggravate the situation – ginatungan siguro nya ang loka… but here’s my take on the situation.
Gratuitous offensiveness is counterproductive. But firm defiance is called for here. Yuga is partly right that we shouldn’t be insulting or taunting… I think there’s a place for being insulting or challenging to politicians like Loren. But only if some good can come out of it, if this can kickstart a productive dialogue about “obscenity” in society. If you’re just insulting her to feed your ego, no thanks.
The problem with ALMOST ALL Filipinos is that:
1) They always think the Philippines is 99.99% corrupt and so:
2) We have “useless” laws, that are:
3) Not implemented by the authorities.
4) We are on a democratic country, and
5) We have laws about Freedom-of-Speech and Human Rights.
Been telling as many people as I can that these kind of mindset is wrong and if they don’t lie low, they are only inviting the people with connections, power, and money, including the Law itself to their doorsteps, no, lives.
This incident is one example.
I wasn’t even surprised with another incident where a home torrenter was arrested a year ago. It wasn’t on the news because the torrenter got connections.
So I agree with what was posted especially:
All I can say is this: This incident simply gave the “group of people” more evidence why Bloggers should be controlled in this country. The fight is becoming even harder.
Seriously, bloggers should start gathering together to discuss this matter. Blog-censoring like it is in our neighboring countries is just around-the-corner.
Btw, you forgot to include one important tip: Change your writing style and choice of words.
JC John, I completely agree with you.
Who is next? and When?
John CC,
Egg-saktimo. Bottom line is somebody got pissed and started to bully somebody! That wasn’t very presidential, ai’nt it?
Well, let’s see what happens next if HER intent was truly pornography regulation!