<s>
Scott	B-Application
Goehring	I-Application
set	O
up	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
in	O
1991	O
,	O
partly	O
as	O
a	O
joke	O
,	O
partly	O
for	O
the	O
purpose	O
of	O
informing	O
the	O
public	O
about	O
Scientology	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Debate	O
over	O
the	O
pros	O
and	O
cons	O
of	O
Scientology	O
waxed	O
and	O
waned	O
on	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
through	O
the	O
first	O
three	O
years	O
of	O
its	O
existence	O
,	O
and	O
flame	O
wars	O
flared	O
up	O
commonly	O
,	O
as	O
they	O
did	O
on	O
some	O
other	O
newsgroups	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
online	O
battle	O
is	O
generally	O
regarded	O
as	O
having	O
begun	O
with	O
the	O
arrival	O
of	O
Dennis	B-Application
Erlich	I-Application
to	O
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
in	O
late	O
July	O
1994	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
former	O
high-ranking	O
official	O
in	O
the	O
Scientology	O
organization	O
who	O
had	O
been	O
personally	O
affiliated	O
with	O
L	O
.	O
Ron	O
Hubbard	O
,	O
he	O
caused	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
regular	O
participants	O
in	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
to	O
sit	O
up	O
and	O
take	O
notice	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
24	O
,	O
1994	O
,	O
the	O
first	O
of	O
a	O
large	O
number	O
of	O
anonymous	B-Algorithm
messages	O
was	O
posted	O
to	O
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
,	O
containing	O
the	O
text	O
of	O
the	O
"	O
secret	O
"	O
writings	O
of	O
Scientology	O
known	O
as	O
the	O
OT	O
Levels	O
(	O
OT	O
stands	O
for	O
"	O
Operating	O
Thetan	O
"	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Xenu	O
story	O
had	O
been	O
published	O
in	O
the	O
Robert	O
Kaufman	O
book	O
Inside	O
Scientology	O
:	O
How	O
I	O
Joined	O
Scientology	O
and	O
Became	O
Superhuman	O
in	O
1972	O
,	O
the	O
Philadelphia	O
Inquirer	O
in	O
1977	O
,	O
and	O
several	O
times	O
in	O
the	O
1980s	O
in	O
the	O
Los	O
Angeles	O
Times	O
;	O
nevertheless	O
,	O
this	O
action	O
brought	O
on	O
the	O
actions	O
of	O
lawyers	O
representing	O
Scientology	O
,	O
who	O
contacted	O
various	O
newsgroup	B-Application
participants	O
and	O
posted	O
warnings	O
demanding	O
that	O
the	O
unauthorized	O
distribution	O
of	O
the	O
OT	O
writings	O
cease	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
postings	O
of	O
the	O
OT	O
documents	O
were	O
done	O
through	O
an	O
anonymous	B-Application
remailer	I-Application
,	O
and	O
the	O
identity	O
of	O
the	O
person	O
who	O
made	O
them	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
was	O
never	O
discovered	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
Dennis	B-Application
Erlich	I-Application
posted	O
replies	O
to	O
these	O
messages	O
on	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
,	O
and	O
his	O
replies	O
contained	O
the	O
entire	O
text	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
messages	O
(	O
including	O
the	O
disputed	O
materials	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Scientology	O
's	O
lawyers	O
therefore	O
approached	O
him	O
,	O
declaring	O
that	O
Erlich	O
had	O
re-published	O
the	O
copyrighted	O
works	O
in	O
his	O
newsgroup	B-Application
messages	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Erlich	O
's	O
reply	O
to	O
this	O
was	O
to	O
deny	O
their	O
requests	O
to	O
remove	O
his	O
postings	O
from	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
11	O
,	O
1995	O
,	O
Scientology	O
lawyer	O
Helena	O
Kobrin	O
attempted	O
to	O
shut	O
down	O
the	O
Usenet	B-Application
discussion	B-Application
group	I-Application
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
by	O
sending	O
a	O
control	B-Protocol
message	I-Protocol
instructing	O
Usenet	B-Application
servers	O
to	O
delete	O
the	O
group	O
on	O
the	O
grounds	O
that	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
1	O
)	O
It	O
was	O
started	O
with	O
a	O
forged	O
message	O
;	O
(	O
2	O
)	O
not	O
discussed	O
on	O
alt.config	B-Protocol
;	O
(	O
3	O
)	O
it	O
has	O
the	O
name	O
"	O
scientology	O
"	O
in	O
its	O
title	O
which	O
is	O
a	O
trademark	O
and	O
is	O
misleading	O
,	O
as	O
a.r.s.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
practice	O
,	O
this	O
rmgroup	O
message	O
had	O
little	O
effect	O
,	O
since	O
most	O
Usenet	B-Application
servers	O
are	O
configured	O
to	O
disregard	O
such	O
messages	O
when	O
applied	O
to	O
groups	O
that	O
receive	O
substantial	O
traffic	O
,	O
and	O
newgroup	B-Protocol
messages	O
were	O
quickly	O
issued	O
for	O
those	O
servers	O
that	O
did	O
not	O
do	O
so	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shortly	O
after	O
the	O
initial	O
legal	O
announcements	O
and	O
rmgroup	O
attempt	O
,	O
representatives	O
of	O
Scientology	O
followed	O
through	O
with	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
lawsuits	O
against	O
various	O
participants	O
on	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
,	O
including	O
Dennis	B-Application
Erlich	I-Application
,	O
in	O
Religious	O
Technology	O
Center	O
v	O
.	O
Netcom	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Accompanied	O
by	O
Scientology	O
lawyers	O
,	O
federal	O
marshals	O
made	O
several	O
raids	O
on	O
the	O
homes	O
of	O
individuals	O
who	O
were	O
accused	O
of	O
posting	O
Scientology	O
's	O
copyrighted	O
materials	O
to	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Raids	O
took	O
place	O
against	O
Arnaldo	O
Lerma	O
(	O
Virginia	B-Application
)	O
,	O
Lawrence	O
A	O
.	O
Wollersheim	O
and	O
Robert	O
Penny	O
of	O
FACTNet	O
(	O
Colorado	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
Dennis	B-Application
Erlich	I-Application
(	O
California	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Internationally	O
,	O
raids	O
took	O
place	O
against	O
Karin	O
Spaink	O
(	O
The	O
Netherlands	O
)	O
and	O
Zenon	B-Application
Panoussis	I-Application
(	O
Sweden	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Participants	O
in	O
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
began	O
using	O
quotes	O
from	O
OT	O
III	O
in	O
particular	O
to	O
publicize	O
the	O
online	O
battle	O
over	O
the	O
secret	O
documents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
story	O
of	O
Xenu	O
was	O
subsequently	O
quoted	O
in	O
many	O
publications	O
,	O
including	O
news	O
reports	O
on	O
CNN	B-Architecture
and	O
60	O
Minutes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Electronic	O
Frontier	O
Foundation	O
provided	O
legal	O
assistance	O
to	O
defendant	O
Tom	O
Klemesrud	O
and	O
his	O
attorney	O
Richard	O
Horning	O
helped	O
find	O
Dennis	B-Application
Erlich	I-Application
pro	O
bono	O
defense	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Daily	O
reports	O
of	O
the	O
latest	O
happenings	O
were	O
posted	O
to	O
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
wake	O
of	O
the	O
Scientologist	O
actions	O
,	O
the	O
Penet	B-Application
remailer	I-Application
,	O
which	O
had	O
been	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
anonymous	B-Application
remailer	I-Application
in	O
the	O
world	O
until	O
the	O
Scientology	O
"	O
war	O
"	O
took	O
place	O
,	O
was	O
shut	O
down	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Johan	O
Helsingius	O
,	O
operator	O
of	O
the	O
remailer	B-Application
,	O
stated	O
that	O
the	O
legal	O
protections	O
afforded	O
him	O
in	O
his	O
country	O
(	O
Finland	O
)	O
were	O
too	O
thin	O
to	O
protect	O
the	O
anonymity	O
of	O
his	O
users	O
and	O
he	O
decided	O
to	O
close	O
down	O
the	O
remailer	B-Application
as	O
a	O
result	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
failing	O
to	O
remove	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
,	O
Scientologists	O
adopted	O
a	O
strategy	O
of	O
newsgroup	B-Application
spam	O
and	O
intimidation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Scientologists	O
hired	O
third	O
parties	O
to	O
regularly	O
flood	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
with	O
pro-scientology	O
messages	O
,	O
vague	O
anti-scientology	O
messages	O
,	O
irrelevant	O
comments	O
,	O
and	O
accusations	O
that	O
other	O
posters	O
are	O
secret	O
Scientologists	O
intent	O
on	O
tracking	O
and	O
punishing	O
posters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
makes	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
virtually	O
unreadable	O
via	O
online	O
readers	O
such	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Groups	I-Application
,	O
although	O
more	O
specialized	O
newsreading	O
software	O
that	O
can	O
filter	B-Application
out	I-Application
all	I-Application
messages	I-Application
by	O
specific	O
"	O
high	O
noise	O
"	O
posters	O
make	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
more	O
usable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
newsgroup	B-Application
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
found	O
itself	O
at	O
the	O
heart	O
of	O
an	O
electronic	O
maelstrom	O
of	O
information	O
and	O
disinformation	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
itself	O
was	O
attacked	O
both	O
literally	O
and	O
figuratively	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tens	O
of	O
thousands	O
of	O
junk	O
messages	O
were	O
spammed	O
onto	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
,	O
rendering	O
it	O
nearly	O
unreadable	O
at	O
times	O
when	O
the	O
message	O
"	O
floods	O
"	O
were	O
at	O
their	O
peaks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Over	O
one	O
million	O
sporgery	B-Application
articles	O
were	O
injected	O
into	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
by	O
Scientology	O
management	O
and	O
staff	O
;	O
former	O
Scientology	O
staff	O
member	O
Tory	O
Christman	O
has	O
spoken	O
at	O
length	O
about	O
her	O
involvement	O
in	O
these	O
attacks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Lawyers	O
representing	O
the	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
made	O
public	O
appeals	O
to	O
Internet	O
service	O
providers	O
to	O
remove	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
completely	O
from	O
their	O
news	O
servers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Furthermore	O
,	O
anonymous	B-Algorithm
participants	O
in	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
kept	O
up	O
a	O
steady	O
stream	O
of	O
flame	O
wars	O
and	O
off-topic	O
arguments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Participants	O
on	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
accused	O
Scientology	O
of	O
organising	O
these	O
electronic	O
attacks	O
,	O
though	O
the	O
organization	O
consistently	O
denied	O
any	O
wrongdoing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Scientology	O
employed	O
Web	O
designers	O
to	O
write	O
thousands	O
of	O
Web	O
pages	O
for	O
their	O
site	O
,	O
thus	O
flooding	O
early	O
search	B-Application
engines	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
advent	O
of	O
modern	O
search	B-Application
engines	I-Application
,	O
this	O
problem	O
was	O
solved	O
by	O
the	O
innovation	O
of	O
clustering	O
responses	O
from	O
the	O
same	O
Web	B-Application
server	I-Application
,	O
so	O
that	O
no	O
more	O
than	O
two	O
results	O
from	O
any	O
one	O
site	O
were	O
shown	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
other	O
side	O
of	O
the	O
battle	O
,	O
many	O
Web-page	O
developers	O
have	O
linked	O
the	O
words	O
"	O
Dianetics	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
Scientology	O
"	O
to	O
Operation	B-Application
Clambake	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
resulted	O
in	O
the	O
anti-Scientology	O
site	O
having	O
the	O
highest	O
Google	B-Application
index	O
on	O
the	O
term	O
for	O
a	O
while	O
,	O
which	O
in	O
turn	O
resulted	O
in	O
Scientology	O
persuading	O
Google	B-Application
to	O
remove	O
links	O
to	O
the	O
site	O
until	O
international	O
outcry	O
led	O
to	O
the	O
links	O
being	O
restored	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
might	O
be	O
considered	O
an	O
early	O
example	O
of	O
a	O
Google	B-Application
bomb	O
,	O
and	O
has	O
led	O
to	O
questions	O
about	O
the	O
power	O
and	O
obligations	O
of	O
Internet	B-Application
search	I-Application
providers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
1990s	O
the	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
was	O
distributing	O
a	O
special	B-Protocol
software	I-Protocol
package	I-Protocol
for	O
its	O
members	O
to	O
'	B-Application
protect	I-Application
 '	I-Application
them	O
from	O
"	O
unapproved	O
"	O
material	O
about	O
the	O
organization	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
software	O
was	O
designed	O
to	O
completely	O
block	O
out	O
the	O
newsgroup	B-Application
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
,	O
various	O
anti-Scientology	O
web	O
sites	O
,	O
and	O
all	O
references	O
to	O
various	O
critics	O
of	O
Scientology	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
software	O
package	O
was	O
derided	O
by	O
critics	O
,	O
who	O
accused	O
the	O
organization	O
of	O
censorship	O
and	O
called	O
the	O
program	O
"	O
Scieno	B-Application
Sitter	I-Application
"	O
,	O
after	O
the	O
content-control	B-Protocol
software	I-Protocol
net-filter	O
program	O
Cyber	O
Sitter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
no	O
updates	O
have	O
been	O
reported	O
since	O
1998	O
(	O
and	O
the	O
original	O
filter	O
program	O
only	O
worked	O
with	O
Windows	B-Application
95	I-Application
)	O
,	O
the	O
package	O
is	O
unlikely	O
to	O
be	O
in	O
use	O
with	O
recent	O
operating	O
systems	O
and	O
browsers	O
due	O
to	O
software	O
rot	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
also	O
campaigned	O
to	O
Google	B-Application
bomb	O
"	O
The	B-Application
Unfunny	I-Application
Truth	I-Application
About	O
Scientology	O
"	O
site	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2007	O
,	O
MSNBC	O
quoted	O
Associated	O
Press	O
,	O
in	O
an	O
article	O
on	O
the	O
Wikipedia	B-Application
Scanner	I-Application
,	O
that	O
computers	O
owned	O
by	O
the	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
had	O
been	O
removing	O
criticism	O
in	O
the	O
Scientology	O
entry	O
on	O
Wikipedia	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
early	O
2008	O
,	O
another	O
protest	B-Algorithm
against	O
the	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
was	O
organized	O
by	O
the	O
Internet-based	O
Anonymous	B-Algorithm
,	O
which	O
originally	O
consisted	O
of	O
users	O
of	O
the	O
English	O
speaking	O
imageboard	O
4chan	O
and	O
forums	O
such	O
as	O
Somethingawful.com,	O
and	O
several	O
Internet	B-Protocol
Relay	I-Protocol
Chat	I-Protocol
channels	O
,	O
among	O
other	O
Internet-based	O
communities	O
claiming	O
affiliation	O
with	O
Anonymous	B-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
14	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
a	O
video	O
produced	O
by	O
the	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
featuring	O
an	O
interview	O
with	O
Tom	O
Cruise	O
was	O
leaked	O
to	O
the	O
Internet	O
and	O
uploaded	O
to	O
YouTube	B-General_Concept
.	I-General_Concept
</s>
<s>
The	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
issued	O
a	O
copyright	O
violation	O
claim	O
against	O
YouTube	B-General_Concept
requesting	O
the	O
removal	O
of	O
the	O
video	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
to	O
this	O
,	O
Anonymous	B-Algorithm
formulated	O
Project	B-Algorithm
Chanology	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
Calling	O
the	O
action	O
by	O
the	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
a	O
form	O
of	O
Internet	B-Application
censorship	I-Application
,	O
members	O
of	O
Project	B-Algorithm
Chanology	I-Algorithm
organized	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
denial-of-service	O
attacks	O
against	O
Scientology	O
websites	O
,	O
prank	O
calls	O
,	O
and	O
black	O
faxes	O
to	O
Scientology	O
centers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
21	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
Anonymous	B-Algorithm
announced	O
its	O
goals	O
and	O
intentions	O
via	O
a	O
video	O
posted	O
to	O
YouTube	B-General_Concept
titled	O
"	O
Message	B-Algorithm
to	I-Algorithm
Scientology	I-Algorithm
"	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
press	O
release	O
declaring	O
a	O
"	O
War	B-Algorithm
on	I-Algorithm
Scientology	I-Algorithm
"	O
against	O
both	O
the	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
and	O
the	O
Religious	O
Technology	O
Center	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
new	O
video	O
"	O
Call	O
to	O
Action	O
"	O
appeared	O
on	O
YouTube	B-General_Concept
on	O
January	O
28	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
calling	O
for	O
protests	O
outside	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
centers	O
on	O
February	O
10	O
,	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
February	O
2	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
150	O
people	O
gathered	O
outside	O
of	O
a	O
Church	O
of	O
Scientology	O
center	O
in	O
Orlando	O
,	O
Florida	O
to	O
hold	O
a	O
protest	B-Algorithm
against	O
the	O
organization	O
's	O
practices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Anonymous	B-Algorithm
held	O
a	O
second	O
wave	O
of	O
protests	O
on	O
March	O
15	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
in	O
cities	O
all	O
over	O
the	O
world	O
,	O
including	O
New	O
York	O
,	O
Chicago	O
,	O
Los	O
Angeles	O
,	O
London	O
,	O
Paris	O
,	O
Vancouver	O
,	O
Toronto	O
,	O
Berlin	O
,	O
and	O
Dublin	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Anonymous	B-Algorithm
held	O
its	O
third	O
protest	B-Algorithm
against	O
Scientology	O
on	O
April	O
12	O
,	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
fourth	O
protest	B-Algorithm
occurred	O
on	O
May	O
10	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
fifth	O
(	O
Operation	O
Sea	O
Arrrgh	O
)	O
occurred	O
on	O
June	O
14	O
,	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Zenon	B-Application
Panoussis	I-Application
,	O
a	O
resident	O
of	O
Sweden	O
,	O
was	O
also	O
sued	O
for	O
posting	O
Scientology	O
's	O
copyrighted	O
materials	O
to	O
the	O
Internet	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dennis	B-Application
Erlich	I-Application
and	O
Scientology	O
settled	O
their	O
lawsuits	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
1999	O
,	O
Scientology	O
used	O
the	O
controversial	O
law	O
to	O
force	O
AT&T	O
Worldnet	O
to	O
reveal	O
the	O
identity	O
of	O
a	O
person	O
who	O
had	O
been	O
posting	O
anonymously	O
to	O
alt.religion.scientology	B-Application
with	O
the	O
pseudonym	O
of	O
"	O
Safe	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
organization	O
also	O
used	O
the	O
DMCA	O
to	O
force	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
search	B-Application
engine	I-Application
to	O
erase	O
its	O
entries	O
on	O
the	O
controversial	O
anti-Scientology	O
Web	O
site	O
Operation	B-Application
Clambake	I-Application
in	O
March	O
2002	O
,	O
though	O
the	O
entry	O
was	O
reinstated	O
after	O
Google	B-Application
received	O
a	O
large	O
number	O
of	O
complaints	O
from	O
Internet	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
publicity	O
stemming	O
from	O
this	O
incident	O
led	O
Google	B-Application
to	O
begin	O
submitting	O
DMCA	O
takedown	O
notices	O
it	O
received	O
to	O
the	O
Chilling	B-Application
Effects	I-Application
archive	O
,	O
which	O
archives	O
legal	O
threats	O
of	O
all	O
sorts	O
made	O
against	O
Internet	O
users	O
and	O
Internet	O
sites	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2002	O
,	O
lawyers	O
for	O
Scientology	O
contacted	O
Internet	O
Archive	O
(	O
archive.org	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
administrators	O
of	O
the	O
Wayback	O
Machine	O
and	O
asserted	O
copyright	O
claims	O
on	O
certain	O
materials	O
archived	O
as	O
historical	O
contents	O
of	O
the	O
Operation	B-Application
Clambake	I-Application
site	O
.	O
</s>
