Www.ratebeer.com Down?

[0M39A]

Not sure if anyone else has posted about this, but i have been trying to get onto ratebeer for a few days now to no avail.

ended up doing a quick google and found this:

http://beerbeatsbites.wordpress.com/2008/1...-save-ratebeer/

Help Save RateBeer

ratebeerJust as I hit the Publish button for my previous post, a disheartening email arrived in my Inbox from Joe Tucker, the owner of RateBeer, a website that Im sure most readers of this blog are familiar with.

As you might know, RateBeer as been the target of a series of attacks lately, with hackers installing malicious scripts that have downloaded viruses and other nasties on the computers of people visiting the site. Several attempts have been made to solve the security problems, and it looked like the issues were sorted out a couple of weeks ago. But this past weekend, there was another especially bad attack, and Joe is running out of options to get the site fixed and back online.

Heres what he has to say:

Im sorry to say that despite our best efforts and an outstanding group of worldwide volunteers and active raters in countries around the the globe, weve come to a point where its difficult to resume our service to craft beer community.

Recently weve come under a steady attack by hackers to shut us down. Im very sorry to say that for now that theyve been successful. And I realize that correcting the issue is beyond my abilities and means.

Im asking you tonight for help.

If you can recommend a top tier Windows IIS/SQL Server security expert or can donate money to RateBeer for the cause please do. Please send help to [email protected] either via PayPal or via mail. Im trying very hard to bring back our service to the community. Please help.

Sincerely
Joe Tucker

If you can help in any way, I strongly encourage you to do so. RateBeer is one of the most important online resources for beer lovers, and its loss would be a huge blow for the international beer scene.

What a terrible thing to hear. I know ratebeer have been copping a bit of flac from hackers lately, and even went onto google & firefox's malicious site list for a while there. Shame to have such a great site be taken down.

wish there was something i could do to help.

 

[Adamt]

The site was up again just a couple of days ago. Obviously all the problems aren't ironed out, sad stuff!

 

[kook]

Joe had it all sorted, it reopened for testing about a week ago, and went live 2 or 3 nights ago. Unfortunately looks like they've found another few bugs.

Latest update (today):


hi gang, the security team saw the threat tonight while they conducting diagnostics. their move was to continue diagnostics in a safe environment by taking the site down and starting tomorrow morning. This operation is a top to bottom approach by the best specialists I could find. They plan on attacking this as a team first thing tomorrow morning.

The plan this time is a prompt relaunch with guaranteed work.

Thank you to everyone in the community for coming together to bring us back. As we approach 2009, people are talking about change. This was the mantra of RateBeer and Beer Advocate many many years ago and things in the beer world were very different. We are now seeing the fruits of our early labors and the many positive changes in the beer industry we'd hoped for so long ago. These changes have only come about because of people like you all, whose passion has made for monumental worldwide change.

I'm grateful many of you -- some without even a RateBeer account -- have pitched in to help us continue our work. Thank you, Todd, for helping us out. While we've had our superficial differences in the past, deep down we've known we're all in this together.

Thanks for showing what a strong family of committed people we are. It's this kind of spirit that has been instrumental in the success of craft beer and the spirit that keeps me fighting for the cause.

Cheers!

Joe

 

[neonmeate]

BA pitched in to save ratebeer?? stranger and stranger! guess we can't suspect them of being the hackers at least...

 

[Muggus]

Glad to see Ratebeer up and running again and good on BA (among others) for helping them out!
The more online beer resources we have the better IMO.

 

[peas_and_corn]

Maybe ratebeer upset carlton and united by bagging its natural beer promise

 

[big_alk]

Maybe ratebeer upset carlton and united by bagging its natural beer promise

think you'll find that is Lion Nathan

 

[Bribie G]

Maybe ratebeer upset carlton and united by bagging its natural beer promise

That was Lion Nathan. As far as we know Fosters Group are still unnatural B)

 

[peas_and_corn]

I get the two confused, their products are so alike.