Available in English Created by Hunter Moore Alexa rank 2,902,768 (April 2014) | Owner BullyVille Slogan(s) "Pure Evil" | |
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Type of site Adult website, media submission Similar CAM4, Chaturbate, Insex Launched 2010 (12 years ago) Current status Defunct, closed on April 19, 2012 | ||
Is Anyone Up? was an online pornographic service based on user generated content that ceased operation in 2012. It allowed users to submit photographs or video anonymously, mainly nude, erotic and, sexually explicit images. The service was closely associated with the metalcore and post-hardcore music scene, also featuring and depicting numerous nude photos of musicians of these genres.
Contents
- The Rise and Fall of Hunter Moore and isanyoneup Tales From the Internet
- History and background
- Controversy
- Incidents
- FBI Investigation
- Popular culture
- References
Is Anyone Up? was subject to great controversy because of the prevalence of revenge porn submissions to the service, many of which were submitted by former romantic partners without consent and with malicious intent. Many of the submitted revenge porn images were obtained as a result of multiple email account hacks. The ongoing incidents resulted in numerous lawsuits and even death threats aimed at Hunter Moore, founder and owner of Is Anyone Up?. The website was shut down on April 19, 2012.
The Rise and Fall of Hunter Moore and isanyoneup - Tales From the Internet
History and background
Is Anyone Up? was founded in late 2010. Founder Hunter Moore stated that the idea for the site came from a woman who continually sent him exposed pictures. He then created a blog hosting nude photographs from anyone and it eventually became isanyoneup.com. As of November 2011, the website was netting as much as $13,000 monthly. Moore said that he spent generally 12 hours, five days a week managing posts, and that the website had over 30 million page views a month.
Every submission to the website usually followed the same formula, depicting a man or woman's social networking website profile thumbnail (such as their Facebook or Twitter profile), then showing images of them clothed, before revealing images of their genitalia. In some cases, images showed people engaging in sexual acts such as masturbation. Each submission line then ended with a "reaction image", usually showing a still or animated gif file of a popular scene or Internet meme as a satirical "reaction" to the images shown.
Moore stated that he took legal precautions before uploading images to the site, initially verifying the age of the people whose photographs were submitted through social networking sites. He sent the IP information of people who submitted photos of underage individuals to a lawyer in Las Vegas, who turned it over to law enforcement. Another category on the site was called "Daily Hate" that featured angry reactions from people who had their pictures posted without their consent.
On April 19, 2012, Moore sold the website to James McGibney, who runs Bullyville.com, a site which allows anonymous people to share details about people who have bullied or harassed them. Moore posted an open letter to BullyVille.com and on the isanyoneup.com domain explaining his decision.
Controversy
Is Anyone Up? has been the subject of much controversy. Many individuals have resorted to either suing Moore, or those associated with the Is Anyone Up? domain, for the display of their nude images on the website. While some images were self-submitted, others were "revenge porn" which has been described as being "pornographic souvenirs from relationships gone sour".
People threaten me with lawsuits every day, which is funny, because it fuels the site. ... The people that get mad hate my site and want to take it down. They send me all this crazy stuff, but at the same time they’re just building content for my site, which just makes me more popular.
In November 2011, Moore appeared on Anderson to discuss Is Anyone Up? while being confronted by two women who had been exposed on the website by an anonymous user. When one of the women criticized Moore for "helping" deceptive people who spread such photographs, he responded: "No one put a gun to your head and made you take these pictures. It's 2011, everything's on the Internet."
On August 21, 2012, BullyVille founder James McGibney posted an open letter to Hunter Moore on the main page of the isanyoneup domain, announcing a class action lawsuit and encouraging people to join in.
Incidents
Floridian rock band A Day to Remember refused to play at the 2011 Bamboozle festival, knowing Hunter Moore attending their performance. They demanded that he be removed from the venue because they objected to Moore's site hosting nude images of the band's bassist, Joshua Woodard, weeks beforehand.
One morning in August 2011, Moore was attacked and stabbed with a pen by a woman featured on the website. Moore managed to escape with a shoulder wound that required surgery.
In December 2011, social networking website Facebook reportedly threatened legal action against the website, blocked any linking to the isanyoneup.com domain through its site, and deleting the official "like" page from its database.
FBI Investigation
On May 16, 2012, The Village Voice reported that Moore and Is Anyone Up were the subject of an investigation by the FBI, as a large number of the pictures formerly hosted on the site were believed to have been illegally obtained by a hacker known as 'Gary Jones'. ABC Nightline revealed that the FBI investigation was started by Charlotte Laws after a photo of her daughter appeared on the website.
In January 2014, Moore and his alleged aide Charles Evens were arrested by the FBI and indicted in a federal district court in California on charges of conspiracy, unauthorized access to a protected computer, and aggravated identity theft.
In February 2015, Moore plead guilty to aggravated identity theft and aiding and abetting in the unauthorized access of a computer.
On July 2, 2015, Charles Evens pleaded guilty to charges of computer hacking and identity theft, confessing to stealing hundreds of images from women's email accounts and selling them to Moore. U.S. District Judge Dolly M. Gee sentenced Evans to more than two years in jail and a fine of $2000. The same judge sentenced Moore in December 2015 to 2 1/2 years in a federal prison with three years supervision following his release. He also had to undergo a mental health evaluation and pay a $2000 fine.
Popular culture
The German metalcore band Eskimo Callboy released a single titled "Is Anyone Up?" that reflects the overall concept and characteristics of the site. Similarly, the New York-based pop punk band Forget Me in Vegas produced a single with the same name, "Is Anyone Up," inspired by the site. In 2012, the electronic band Blood on the Dance Floor included a track named "Revenge Porn" in their album "Evolution," which mentions the site and Hunter Moore in its lyrics. Additionally, the electropop group Millionaires released a remix of Ludacris's song "My Chick Bad," named "My Chick Bad (Remix)," featuring lyrics about uploading images to Is Anyone Up?.