AUSTIN (KXAN) — For the second time in a week, “ProLifeWhistleblower.com,” the website allowing users to submit anonymous tips about individuals believed to have tried to receive abortions, has been shut down.
The Washington Post reports web host Epik, took down ProLifeWhistleblower over the weekend after determining the tip line violated its terms of service by gathering information about third parties. The group behind the site, anti-abortion group Texas Right to Life, was previously dropped by host GoDaddy.
The site cropped up after the passage of Texas’ controversial Senate Bill 8, which bans abortions from being performed after six weeks, before most women even know they’re pregnant. Additionally, SB 8 allows private citizens to sue those who aid abortion for up to $10,000, which many say would essentially place a bounty on people’s heads.
Since the law went in effect Sept. 1, the whistleblower site has faced other challenges, including a temporary crash after TikTok users spammed the tip line with fake tips, memes and even the entire script for the 2007 animated “Bee Movie.”
Despite international outcry, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the law to stand on Tuesday, after a group of Texas abortion clinics and advocates requested the law be blocked. SCOTUS could still make a move soon.
Nationally, the law has faced fierce condemnation — including calls for businesses and individuals to #BoycottTexas.
On Wednesday, the city council of Portland, Oregon, will voter whether to ban future travel and trading of goods and services with Texas in protest of the legislation, The Hill reports. Meanwhile, Lyft and Uber have pledged to cover legal fees for drivers who encounter lawsuits related to anyone they might transport to receive abortive services.
“ProLifeWhistleBlower.com” currently redirects to Texas Right to Life’s website, which Epik has never hosted. A spokesperson for Epik, which has hosted the QAnon-saturated 8chan, told WaPo that the site’s domain registration is still under discussion.
Follow KXAN’s Russell Falcon on Twitter @RussellFalcon for more Texas abortion law updates.
