[BlueOnyx:06151] FBI raids on Dallas Datacenters

[Chris Gebhardt - VIRTBIZ Internet]

I normally would not comment on this sort of issue, but since the topic 
has been raised to me privately by a couple of our customers (who are 
also members of the BlueOnyx / BlueQuartz community) I thought I would 
offer a bit of background.

It takes quite a bit for me to speak ill of others, especially in a 
public forum, but I wish to be very plain in my opinion and analysis so 
that you have a very accurate idea of the real story.

Some of you may be aware that the FBI visited two datacenters back in 
April of 2009 and removed equipment in connection with an investigation 
they were running.   Apparently, this has become a topic again today 
because of a follow-up article written on the FBI defending their 
actions.   I understand that some of you may be concerned that since the 
articles mention the datacenters are located in Dallas.   I can tell you 
that the city of location is about the ONLY thing VIRTBIZ has in common 
with those facilities.

Here are some points that I would like to make very clear:
1) Union Datacom and its sister-companies are owned by a person named 
Mike Faulkner.  I've met Mike and he has courted our business on a 
couple of occasions.  In my opinion, I would trust him about as far as I 
can throw him.

2) Mike Faulkner skipped out on the rent at their facility at 2020 Live 
Oak in Dallas (a location where he really wanted to have VIRTBIZ build a 
facility into).  When this happened, several customers were given NO 
notice, and the landlord changed the locks and left the customers 
without the ability to access their equipment.  Other customers were 
moved - with no notice - to another datacenter.

3) When Mr. Faulkner learned he was under Federal investigation, he fled 
to Mexico and later faked his death.  He was later arrested, along with 
his wife and two of his associates, in Cancun Mexico.

4) In my opinion, Faulkner is a slimy guy.  I don't trust him, don't 
like him very much, and based on my conversations with others in the 
community am certain he's dirty.   Based on my conversations with the 
man himself, I know that he lies without a second thought.  He told me 
direct falsehoods regarding his facility's generator, UPS, maintenance 
agreements, and peering carriers.  My opinion is the guy is a thief and 
a liar.

5) The other datacenter that was involved was Core IP over at 2323 Bryan 
Street.  Matt Simpson was the owner there and I have also had the 
opportunity to meet with him in years past.  I think he's a decent guy, 
but he's made some bad decisions in (a) the people that he partners with 
and (b) the types of customers he allows in the datacenter.  That is my 
opinion.

6) VIRTBIZ has *nothing* to do with those datacenters or their 
proprietors.   We made the strategic decision almost 4 years ago to 
build our own facility, in a building that we exclusively own and 
operate.  We have 10,000 square feet of datacenter in a freestanding 
building with no attachments to any other business.

7) As any of our customers will attest, we make it a point to get to 
know our customers even before they move into the datacenter.  We like 
to get a good feel for who our customers are, what they do, and what 
they stand for.   We have no problems with telling a customer it would 
be best for them to take their business elsewhere if we feel they're not 
a good fit.

8) We are a legitimate, family-owned and operated business that has been 
doing business in Dallas for over 30 years.  We've been in the hosting 
industry since 1996.  We're not some fly-by-night newcomer with a 
get-rich-quick scheme.

9) We are fully staffed, on-site, at all times.  If a law-enforcement 
official comes to visit, we're here to greet them.  If they would like 
information about one of our customers, we will provide that information 
if we are lawfully served with a subpoena.  In our history, we have had 
to follow this policy on 3 occasions.   If law-enforcement wished to 
retrieve equipment from the datacenter, we would gladly assist them if 
presented with a warrant.   Contrast this with the situations from the 
news story in which law-enforcement was unable to access any people or 
information from the unmanned facilities, and the proprietors did not 
follow-up by returning phone calls as requested.

Sure, the "raids" made headlines.  But you have to consider the source 
of the news stories.  That sort of thing would simply not occur at 
VIRTBIZ.   We run our ship much tighter than that.

In short, the FBI does not simply wander around Dallas looking for 
datacenters from which they can confiscate equipment.  They follow 
leads, investigate crimes, and do their jobs in the course of that business.

If you have any questions, please let me know.

Otherwise, Happy Holidays to one and all!

-- 
Chris Gebhardt
VIRTBIZ Internet Services
Access, Web Hosting, Colocation, Dedicated
www.virtbiz.com | toll-free (866) 4 VIRTBIZ