The Brass Report
February 26th, 2004 at 1:32 am
Well I know it’s been a little while since I last updated, but hopefully this one will make up for it. Come with me if you will on a bizarre little journey into the world of identity theft and virtual lives. If you’ve read my earlier post “Identity, Why Do I Care?” you’ll already know a little about it, but believe me, that wasn’t even half of the story.
In the latter half of 2003 I began frequenting a well known mac community site called spymac. It’s one of the largest sites of it’s kind, and has a very diverse and active user-base. Over time I began to get to know some of the members who post in the forums, and there were a few people that I exchanged messages with on a semi-regular basis. One of these people went by the nickname of dotcomboi.
On spymac everyone gets to use what’s known as an avatar, a small graphic that represents you visually, often people use a photograph of themselves, or a graphic that relates to Macintosh computers / Apple products, anything really that they want. Dotcomboi’s avatar was a photographic portrait of himself, or at least so he said. If you detected a note of suspicion in my tone just then it’s because dotcomboi’s photo was exceptional in two regards, firstly that the quality and composition of the photograph was highly professional, and secondly because the young gentleman featured in the image was by anyone’s definition particularly handsome, a fact commented on by many fellow members of the forums. Now although this was unusual, it was not beyond the realms of possibility and was quickly explained by dotcomboi as he claimed to have worked as a model for several years until quite recently. He also claimed to be currently working as a web/graphics designer, director, and general new media guru. He told me and many others of his job as owner of a new media company based in Aventura, Florida. Said company going by the name of Hyperactive. Now this seemed odd to me, that someone would undertake such an extreme career change, but again, without reason to really care I simply dismissed any doubts I had. That was until two new forums members appeared claiming that dotcomboi wasn’t all he claimed to be. The two members started to harass dotcomboi claiming the photo he was using was not him, that they had seen the photo somewhere before. This got me interested. So I thought I’d take a look through his member gallery, to see if I could find any evidence either way. Curiously enough there was a distinct lack of photos of himself, instead I was greeted by numerous pictures of iPods and various other gadgets. However one of the photos of his iPod also clearly showed his hand holding it, and what was strange about this hand was that the fingers were oddly fat, almost like sausages. This didn’t seem to make sense in relation to his face picture. So I added to the thread were his identity was being challenged, asking about the fat fingers. I rapidly received a series of messages claiming extreme offense on his part, but it didn’t alter the fact of his disproportionaly chubby digits.
QUOTE: Look mate - you’re a nice guy. Frankly, the way the two threads I’m concerned with have ended up is disgusting me to no extent. I raised a valid concern with hotbritboy, and my suspicions were proven correct. He and Inde were using the same IP address, belonging to a US cable provider. How on earth can they be in London at King’s College when they’re using a US ISP?
…I took offence from your comment about my fingers. They don’t look fat to me nor to anyone else. You’re the first to notice, even though that was one of the most popular images considering I was the first on Spymac to obtain a 30GB iPod.
So please — leave me alone — and believe what you want. I’m done.
OK I thought, it’s weird, but I’ll let it slide, or at least that’s what I thought until I realised that he’d quickly removed that photo from his gallery.
By this point I was intrigued, so I started to cultivate an online friendship with dotcomboi, who said that his real name was Jaron Brass. We continued to exchange messages, and I allowed him to think that I’d forgotten the whole thing, but behind the scenes I kept on digging. I’d probably have gone no further if it were not for a crucial error on Jaron’s part. Before christmas I’d made passing reference to a UK TV presenter I thought was good looking named Alistair Appleton. Shortly after christmas Jaron informed me that he had a new boyfriend, and you’ll never guess who it was. Yep, you got it, Alistair Appleton! Now any sane person would have decided right then and their that this guy’s a fraud, and that’s exactly the conclusion I came to. I continued on with the ruse though, eager to discover more. The more I talked to Jaron (now over iChat/AIM) the more details he provided about his life with Alistair and his work for TV companies such as the BBC. He was creating a carefully constructed world and I found it more and more fascinating. He talked of how he and Alistair wanted to keep their relationship secret from the press, and that Alistair wasn’t keen on ‘coming out’ at that time. This was also odd on two counts, one that Alistair Appleton is as gay as the hills, and openly so. Secondly, despite his talents Alistair isn’t a big celeb here (yet) and is probably of little consequence to the mainstream tabloid press, even less so when you consider that it’s impossible to out someone who is already out.
Fueled by these increasing trips into the bizarre I did a bit more digging on the net and came across some interesting pages. One of the pages featured a photograph of a teenager called Jaron Brass accepting an award for some web design competition at his school, in… Aventura, Florida. Hmmm….. This guy was by no means a model, in fact he was rather obese, and about 5 years younger than Jaron claimed to be. (unfortunately this page has now been removed, Jaron knew I’d seen it, but the google cache is still there minus the image.
Google Cache
One of the other things my search turned up were several old forum pages from various sites where Jaron Brass had been a member. I rapidly discovered that Jaron had become quite unpopular at these sites due to him being caught in several lies about his job and life, so unpopular that he’d been forced to leave them. In one he’d become quite the folk legend, but the members were so suspicious of Jaron’s antics that they suspected me, and weren’t forthcoming with the history of what they called Jarongate. http://www.metropol247.co.uk/forum/ (read the earlier post to get more detail)
Once armed with this information I decided to challenge Jaron and try to get the truth. Boy oh boy was he mad. He lost it with me, and really tried to guilt trip me in a big way. He accused me of all sorts of things, before going on to explain that what had happened at those forums was a part of his life he regretted and during a period where he was ‘going through some stuff’. He justified it again and again, and eventually I had to give him the benefit of the doubt. He said that the photo on the site was not him, that he had ran the web competition and had been inaccurately credited as one of the winning pupils, that he was not the obese child in the photo.
On his website he made frequent mention of an ex boyfriend named Eric. The only Eric I could find that related to anything else he had said though was a video Director named Eric who had worked on a music video called “Amigo” that Jaron claimed to have directed. Funny thing was, the web says that this Eric guy directed that film, and Mr Brass is not credited anywhere except his own site. When I inquired about Eric he informed me that Eric was dead and had died in a car crash in November 2003 and was a different Eric to the ’second unit’ director Eric. I found details of the real crew here:
http://www.mackeymedia.com/amigo_shoot_web/
Eric he said had been a worked at the Apple Store in Miami. Now I’ve no way of confirming or refuting this tale, however no such man or crash appears anywhere in the net archives, despite coming across several recorded auto wrecks in that area. Said crashes came up again and again on lots of different sites, but none of these sites had stories about a car crash involving a man named Eric. Now I’ve assumed this to be a lie also, and this is the lie that has led me to expose Mr Brass for the liar he is. He tried to make me feel VERY bad about questioning this Eric character.
At this point I was so intrigued as to where he’d take it next that I feigned guilt and apologised profusely in order to regain his trust. It worked, and soon we were back to normal. But I was angry, he’d tried to manipulate my sympathies by pretending to have been recently bereaved. But I hid my anger and strung him along further. Eventually a couple of weeks ago Jaron took a chance. I’d built up his confidence enough that he finally revealed the truth, not purposefully of course. Jaron initiated a one way video ichat with me. While I pretended that it wasn’t working and that I was only getting ‘green blocks’ I took a screen grab of Mr Brass’ grotesque visage. This was the same guy from the web competition and it certainly wasn’t the guy he pretended to be. He claimed that he’d ‘put on a little weight over christmas, mainly around his face’. Now, you be the judge, but I don’t think that is either a little weight, or limited to his face:
| JARONS ‘SUPPOSED’ IMAGE: | UPDATED: (from metropol247, the web award photo of Jaron) |
 |
 |
| JARONS REAL FACE: | |
 |
|
Now as if all this weren’t enough, I discover a new wave of horrors in relation to Mr Brass. Several other members of spymac were also spun the same lies, but some of them had a harder time shaking him off, and he actually began to et a bit ’stalky’ with them. And in just the last few hours it’s come to my attention that Mr Brass’ personal website’s entire design, and much of the posted content has been ENTIRELY stolen from someone else’s blog! He only changed the colour scheme and some of the images!
JARONS STOLEN SITE:
So why post it? Well mainly because of the ‘Eric’ lie, I found it so offensive that I ran out of sympathy for any issues that may be driving Jaron. Also it seems Mr Brass is quite adept at covering his tracks, and so I hope this post and any comments you guys make will serve as a permanent repositary for any and all info that can be accumulated on Mr Brass and his manipulative activities. Unfortunately I underestimated how quickly Jaron would respond to his impending doom, and the web prize photo is gone, and his entire site is now offline. Below are all the links of any relevance that I can find, and I do hope you’ll all add more, along with your experiences of Mr Brass.
http://www.jaronbrass.com - his blog
http://www.get-hyper.com/ - his ‘company’
http://www.cafeshops.com/hastore - a cafepress store
http://www.mackeymedia.com/amigo_shoot_web/ - his ‘video shoot’
http://www.metropol247.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1000 - link to a thread about previous dirt on jaron, those guys know a lot about Mr Brass
http://www.spymac.com/member.php?memberid=14501 - Jaron ‘dotcomboi’ Brass’ spymac profile page
http://www.jasewells.com/ - The site Jaron ripped off
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February 26th, 2004 at 1:47 am
I can verify this is all true! He is spun a web of lies - and now he is caught. Don’t be surprised if dotcomboy disappears off the net… Look online you can find his phone number - call him and let him know that he is a fake.
February 26th, 2004 at 1:59 am
You couldn’t make it up
Around a year ago now, I went through almost exactly the same sequence of events as a guy called Lee J Parry, who did a little more investigating than I could be bothered, and blogged it at DietSoda.
So if you ever hear of a guy called Jaron Brass d…
February 26th, 2004 at 2:07 am
Jaron Brass also has a .Mac account and home page: http://homepage.mac.com/jlbrass/
February 26th, 2004 at 2:12 am
The only thing I’m concerned is if he decides to make up a new name and pull the same stunt on some other forum. Then again, he has a tendancy to fuck it up, so hopefully they’d find out before it got too bad.
I hope you trackbacked his blog (if he has it) so he reads your post.
February 26th, 2004 at 2:20 am
He’s on Orkut - http://www.orkut.com/Profile.aspx?uid=1668725626228804056
Also, I have several emails from him and his “mom”. They type remarably similar — his mom happens to be a copyright lawyer. Right.
February 26th, 2004 at 2:32 am
Yep, orkut profiles abound.
here are some copies…
http://blog.dietsoda.net/jaron/orkut%20-%20profile%20-%20personal.html
http://blog.dietsoda.net/jaron/orkut%20-%20profile%20-%20professional.html
http://blog.dietsoda.net/jaron/orkut%20-%20profile%20-%20social.html
February 26th, 2004 at 2:38 am
Jaron’s site is no longer functional it seems, hmmm…. welcome everyone BTW, let’s really get this show on the road!
Welcome those from Metropol, spymac, and to one and all.
This comment system accepts anonymous posts, and i will never reveal sources, so feel free!
February 26th, 2004 at 2:44 am
You’re very welcome.
One thing, off-topic, when one clicks the following link (posted by) it doesn’t open in a new window…
February 26th, 2004 at 2:45 am
This might be his Amazon.com profile:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/cm/member-glance/-/A1VWGUCKF8Z621
If it is, one of his reviews says he used to work for Jellyfish. The boy gets around!
February 26th, 2004 at 2:51 am
Thanks dvboy, i’ll fix that asap, but if those that can use targets do in the mean time it would be great.
February 26th, 2004 at 2:52 am
Wow, this is the most comprehensive end-all place for info on Jaron and his multitude of Lies yet.
It’s all very sad, but we have learned something.
February 26th, 2004 at 2:59 am
Compare the picture of Jaron’s blog to Jase’s Jan 21st entry: http://jasewells.com/archive/post/308
February 26th, 2004 at 3:03 am
I just received a nasty email from Jaron’s “mom”. This has prompted me to post any and all email correspondence I have received from either of them to this blog. Maybe she forgot what “public domain” meant?!?
February 26th, 2004 at 3:12 am
Date: Tue, 24 Feb 2004 20:39:19 -0600
From: kip
Subject: Jaron Brass website
To: sbrass01@bellsouth.net
Ms. Brass -
I got your email address from Jaron Brass’s website (http://jaronbrass.com/)
I just wanted you to know that it is a complete forgery — design,
content, pictures, and pretty much most of everything else too.
Here is the original author’s website: http://jasewells.com/
Take a look around. Look at past weblog entries. Perhaps you might want
to talk to your son about this? This is very bizarre.
Take care,
–Kip
February 26th, 2004 at 3:14 am
Date: Tue, 24 Feb 2004 22:00:32 -0500
From: sbrass01@bellsouth.net
Subject: Re: Jaron Brass website
To: kip
Hello Kip,
I’m glad you wrote to me. I don’t get e-mail all that often.
When Jaron told me he was making a site for himself he said he found a site he liked and wanted to
draw on the design. I have seen your friend Jase’s site before, actually, with Jaron. When his new site
launched I know he used a template from somewhere that was made by Jase and publically available. So
I don’t feel it is right for you to say that the design is a forgery.
All of the pictures there are of him and friends and there is much of his own work. However I do not
know how much of this other person’s site he has copied. I’m not particular interested in it.
I see some of the blog entries are the same and that is plagiarism so Jaron was wrong by doing that. As
for whatever else is there I guess it is up to Jaron and your friend Jase to solve the problem amicably. If
Jase put his site template online for someone else to use surely he knew this could happen?
I will talk to Jaron and see what he has to say. Until then there is not much else I can say.
February 26th, 2004 at 3:16 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 01:26:16 -0500
From: Jaron Brass
Subject: Hello
To: kip@kipbond.com
Kip,
My name is Jaron Brass. The person who copied Jase Wells’ website. I’ve spoken to Jase and we’ve agreed a way forward on this situation. I’m going to remove any materials which violate his copyright and give credit where credit is due.
However, I do not appreciate the way in which you have literally “attacked” me. My mother did not appreciate receiving an e-mail from you and I certainly do not appreciate the messages you have sent to MY friends on Orkut concerning the situation. It is an invasion of my privacy and I take such things very seriously.
What should have been a simple misunderstanding (which has since been cleared up) has been blown completely out of proportion by your actions.
I am asking you to retract any messages sent to individuals or to forums on Orkut. Whilst you might be Jase’s friend, the situation certainly did not concern you — and the way in which you have reacted is ridiculous in my opinion.
I’ve also noticed, on your site, that you’ve copied his method of displaying information as well — such as that in your very own profile. Whilst your pages might look different, you can easily see the similarities inherent. Obviously as a friend, he probably doesn’t care. But frankly I don’t take too kindly to whistleblowers. And I don’t want to lose friends over something so insignificant in the overall scheme of things.
Again, I am not trying to cause a commotion — I would just appreciate your cooperation in removing the messages you have sent and letting Jase and I work this situation out on our own. I’ve disabled my site until I return to my home (I’m away on business) and can remove the materials and make the changes Jase and I have agreed to.
Regards,
Jaron L. Brass
February 26th, 2004 at 3:17 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 06:45:11 -0600
From: kip
Subject: Re: Hello
To: Jaron Brass
I actually didn’t start doing anything (other than telling Jase) until I
saw you were deleting our comments, and keeping us from posting any more.
I thought that implied you weren’t going to remove the content. Anyway,
I’m glad you are working this “misunderstanding” out. It is perfectly
fine to use similarities of someone’s website — but to copy the actual
content, and post it as your own is a different story. I will post an
update of the situation to the messages I have sent stating that you are
taking care of the problem.
Thanks,
–Kip
February 26th, 2004 at 3:17 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 08:13:05 -0600
From: kip
Subject: Re: Jaron Brass website
To: sbrass01@bellsouth.net
Ms. Brass -
Thanks for your very polite response. I agree that using aspects of
someone’s design is perfectly fine. Jase provided the template for public
use, and that is fine to use as well. However, Jaron’s site went far
beyond just using Jase’s design template.
The blog entry that you had replied to, as if you were replying to things
Jaron wrote, were in fact the verbatim words of Jase. It was apparant
that Jaron would go back on a regular basis and copy Jase’s blog entries
verbatim, and use them as if they were his own. Jaron copied many images
from Jase’s site that Jase had created himself, overwriting Jase’s
copyright mark, and placing his own on the images.
Jaron did write to me, and said he was taking care of this issue:
“My name is Jaron Brass. The person who copied Jase Wells’ website. I’ve
spoken to Jase and we’ve agreed a way forward on this situation. I’m going
to remove any materials which violate his copyright and give credit where
credit is due.”
Ma’am, I don’t want to cause any more problems than already exist. I know
you don’t know me, nor my motivations. For what it’s worth, I wanted to
let you know about this as it appeared to me that this may be far more
than a copyright infringement issue. The only word that I can come up
with is “bizarre”.
I wish you and Jaron the best, and hope any real problems are resolved,
and any misunderstandings are forgiven.
Sincerely,
–Kip
February 26th, 2004 at 3:18 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 10:37:27 -0500
From: Jaron Brass
Subject: Re: Hello
To: kip
Kip,
Thanks for the reply. That’s actually why I deleted your comments and prevented you from posting more. I was trying to get in touch with Jase, and some of the comments left were — in my opinion — not very helpful to the overall situation. I removed them and got in contact with him, and, as I said, sorted the whole situation out. I didn’t want other individuals visiting my site to garner the wrong impression until I had a chance to work things through.
Fortunately, everything is fine now. I’ve deleted the offending blog entries and when I get back to Florida I will remove anything else that Jase and I have outlined. It was not intelligent to do what I did (obviously) but I guess it does reinforce what Orkut stands for… a trusted network of friends. You did the right thing.
As for my mother: please don’t e-mail her again.
Thanks again for everything.
-Jaron
February 26th, 2004 at 3:19 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 10:40:24 -0500
From: Jaron Brass
Subject: Another thing…
To: kip@kipbond.com
I also have left my site down. The excess traffic caused by the circumstances actually managed to crash my database server, and I can’t restart it from here in the Bahamas (Internal IP w/ no SSH) even via my company’s VPN.
I’m alpha testing MovableType 3.0, so in the grand scheme of things it’s not a problem. The modifications I made to the MT backend won’t support my Oracle server, so I’m just going to install MT 3.0 and go from there.
Thanks again,
Jaron
February 26th, 2004 at 3:20 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 09:50:39 -0600
From: kip
Subject: Re: Hello
To: Jaron Brass
You definitely seem to be making this right, which is a good sign of
character. In all honesty, I still don’t understand why someone would
continuously copy blog entries of someone else, but I trust that you
either had a good reason, or will use this opportunity to examine your
motives. I sincerely wish you all the best, and apologize for any undue
“drama” I may have helped instigate. That was not my intention at all.
Take care,
–Kip
February 26th, 2004 at 3:21 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 12:01:42 -0500
From: Jaron Brass
Reply-To: Jaron Brass
Subject: Re: Hello
To: kip
I’m trying to as best as one can. Because I’m alpha testing MT 3.0 I want to see if they’ve changed their default design. I may even roll my own depending on how much of the template structure has actually changed. It might be easier for me to just build a new site rather than try to incorporate whatever is new with what I have now.
As for the blog entries — when I first visited Jase’s site, I fell in love with it. I don’t even remember how I came to find it. It was one of those “random” moments in life I suppose. I wanted to “borrow” his design but alter it after I found his “grayline” templates for BetterHTMLExport online, which he made publicly available. Because I’m constantly travelling and never home, I don’t have the time to update my blog on a daily basis as I had wanted to. So I began copying some of the entries and posting them on my site. I ended up getting carried away and ultimately caught. I suppose I owe it to myself to devote more time to the site if I plan on having one and hopefully my schedule will slow down to allow me to do that. My life hasn’t been the same since my partner of 11 years was killed in a car accident back in November. Frankly, that is the number one reason I’m away so much: I can’t stand to be in the condo we shared. At times it feels it’s almost haunted. Because of that, it was easier to just copy and paste rather than devote however long it took to write an entry.
Jase is going to continue letting me use his current design, and I plan on modifying it even further. I’m one to build upon what someone else has done and I’ve started that. I’ve completely rewritten MovableType, added features to the site such as iChat status and my current/recent played tunes and more. It was never my intention to harm him — only to improve, per-say, what he had already created. And from day one I had the iTunes thingy, and I noticed he added his recently.
I’m going to add you to my list of Orkut friends. You seem like a very nice, trusting guy and I’d love to have both you and Jase in my circle of friends. They say you grow from things like this — and hopefully we can manage to grow a worthwhile friendship that will last.
Regards,
Jaron Brass
February 26th, 2004 at 3:22 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 16:02:45 -0500
From: sbrass01@bellsouth.net
Reply-To: sbrass01@bellsouth.net
Subject: Re: Re: Jaron Brass website
To: kip
Kip,
Thank you for writing back. As a lawyer, I deal with these situations frequently. I’ve discussed the
ramifications of using someone else’s content with Jaron and he knows he made a mistake.
I have examined Jase Well’s site, and he has no copyright to anything. Just because he wrote it himself
doesn’t make a copyright stick. In order to truly copyright his work, he would need to contact a lawyer
and go through the motions of proving the work to be his beyond any reasonable doubt.
Often times, many people feel that attaching “Copyright” to a web page, article or the like constitutes a
valid copyright. Unfortunately, it does not. Nor can Jase properly license his content or site design to
Jaron without a proper copyright.
The fact that Jaron copied the blog entries is and will always be wrong. However, the other issues at
hand: the site design, pictures, etc. are unfortunately part of the public domain once Jase chose to
upload them. The DCMA does protect in certain situations, but not all. In a court of law, Jase would
have to prove to judge and jury that the site design was his, the photos his, and everything else that
might have been infringed upon his. This is no easy task as one would find out. Properly copyrighting
something is difficult for traditional items, but for the Internet and new media it’s made much harder by
the fact that information flows so freely.
We handled a case just recently in which Company A said a design purportedly created by Company B
was in fact originally created by Company A and discarded. A significant sum of money was involved.
Company A could not prove that Company B ’stole’ their design, and thusly, Company B won. Company
A had to pay substantial legal fees and penalties for the time and inconvenience.
I do not wish to lecture you. I’m just attempting to say that you have a slight misunderstanding of what
copyrighting a property really is. Please take no offense to the content of this e-mail. I’m just
attempting to prevent you throwing the term “copyright infringement” around when it doesn’t apply.
Regards,
Susan Brass
February 26th, 2004 at 3:23 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 15:35:56 -0600
From: kip
Subject: Re: Jaron Brass website
To: sbrass01@bellsouth.net
Ms. Brass -
Can you confirm that the person in the attached photograph is your son,
Jaron Brass? I was informed that it was not really him in the picture.
Thanks,
–Kip
February 26th, 2004 at 3:23 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 18:28:39 -0500
From: sbrass01@bellsouth.net
Subject: Re: Re: Jaron Brass website
To: kip
Kip,
The picture you have attached is of my son.
February 26th, 2004 at 3:24 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 21:58:20 -0500
From: Susan Brass
Subject: Invasion of Privacy
To: kip
Mr. Bond,
I have been directed by my son to the following site:
http://blog.dietsoda.net/archives/000020.php
Apparently some think it is funny to breach my son’s trust and attempt to make him out as a fraud.
Because you are involved (based on your commentary and communication with me), I have decided to
take appropriate action to defend him.
Before the end of this week a subpoena will be sent to your ISP, the ISP hosting your website and your
place of work demanding the surrender of any e-mail correspondence between you and any other
individuals involved. I had warned you previously and you failed to comply.
I am filing suit against Lee J. Parry and his UK based website to remove the information immediately. I
am blessed with a firm in the UK that will handle the case for me.
I will defend my son in any manner I can and do not appreciate your failure to listen or comply with my
demands.
Regards,
Susan Brass
February 26th, 2004 at 3:24 am
re your 3:22 (GMT) post, oh, one thing I love abotu the UK is that you don’t have to register copyright
February 26th, 2004 at 3:26 am
Oh yes, and why does she believe dietsoda is based in the UK?
hmmm i really should get some sleep
February 26th, 2004 at 3:28 am
Oh wait, it is. I was getting confused with some other blog I just read.
Godo luck to her, anyway.
February 26th, 2004 at 3:29 am
here’s a question, why did he video chat you?
February 26th, 2004 at 3:33 am
Just another interesting link or two.
http://www.jackhaywardhighschool.org/credits/ - Jack Hayward High School (Freeport, Grand Bahama) - Notice who is give credit for “Design and Consulation”.
And one can only assume that “hyperactive” is his personal design company. Although it looks like a fairly professionally designed site. Hmmm. Wonder if he’s claiming to work for them as well.
February 26th, 2004 at 3:39 am
Ms. Brass claims to be a lawyer versed in copyright law, yet she apparently doesn’t know that the U.S. also does not require registration to claim copyright: http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ1.html#hsc
She sent me a nasty letter, too, claiming that she’s going to subpoena me. I’ll believe it when I see it.
February 26th, 2004 at 3:47 am
And after going back and reading all those comments, I guess having been credited as the Designer of the high school site makes sense now. I mean, he did mention that he was in the Bahama’s on business.
What a story….
February 26th, 2004 at 3:49 am
Damn, I guess I’ll be getting a subpoena as well since I started commenting on this page.
Jase, did you in fact talk with Mr. Brass about what he could and could not use from your site?? He mentioned several times in the e-mails to Kip about conversations with you…
February 26th, 2004 at 3:56 am
The company called “Hyperactive” looks like it might be fake, too. Dig around the site a bit; it’s very suspicious. Anyone know anything about it?
February 26th, 2004 at 4:04 am
Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 22:34:30 -0500
From: Susan Brass
Subject: Thank You
To: kip
Dear Mr. Bond:
Thank you for confirming your stupidity. It didn’t take long. The e-mails sent to you were not public
domain and I did not give exclusive permission to you to add the contents of them to a website or any
other medium.
I have completed a background check using public records and Texas government sources and have
acquired your driving record, license, tax returns, property deeds and other pertinent information. If a
subpoena cannot be delivered to your place of employment, I will have one sent to your home residence
for which I now have the address.
I do not play games. If your intention is to embarass my son, be warned I can do far worse. Your further
cooperation is expected and advised. Please govern yourself accordingly.
Regards,
Susan Brass
LEGAL NOTICE
Unless expressly stated otherwise, this message is confidential and may
be
privileged. It is intended for the addressee(s) only. Access to this
e-mail by anyone else is unauthorised and may be unlawful. If you are
not an addressee, please inform the sender immediately.
E-mail messages can be intercepted, corrupted, lost or contain viruses.
The sender does not accept liability for any errors or omissions in the
contents of this message which arise during e-mail transmission.
February 26th, 2004 at 4:08 am
A lawyer would never use the phrase “Thank you for confirming your stupidity.”
February 26th, 2004 at 4:08 am
Don’t believe the lies anyone - that is not him in ‘his’ photographs.
I wouldn’t believe that you are speaking with his mother either.
February 26th, 2004 at 4:08 am
Registrant:
Jaron Brass.com, LLC
2851 NE 183 Street
Suite 205E
Aventura, FL 33160-2136
US
Registrar: DOTSTER
Domain Name: JARONBRASS.COM
Created on: 10-NOV-02
Expires on: 10-NOV-04
Last Updated on: 31-JAN-04
Administrative, Technical Contact:
Brass, Jaron L. jaron@jaronbrass.com
Jaron Brass.com, LLC
2851 NE 183 Street
Suite 205E
Aventura, FL 33160-2136
US
(305) 937-4288
(305) 799-6547
February 26th, 2004 at 4:09 am
Oh yes, because public records and government offices are open that late at night.
February 26th, 2004 at 4:13 am
“LEGAL NOTICE
Unless expressly stated otherwise, this message is confidential and may
be
privileged. It is intended for the addressee(s) only. Access to this
e-mail by anyone else is unauthorised and may be unlawful. If you are
not an addressee, please inform the sender immediately.”
And would a lawyer not know how to spell?? Anyone else catch the blatent and obvious mis-spelling there that a lawyer, in my opinion, would be the first to catch. They talk about things being authorized and unauthorized all the time. Hmmm…
February 26th, 2004 at 4:16 am
As I remember, Jaron is British born, and his parents were British, therefore it’s probable she would use the British spelling “authorised” over “authorized”.
Not that I want to defend him/her or anything.
February 26th, 2004 at 4:19 am
Registrant:
HyperActive Corporation
19010 NE 29 Ave
Aventura, FL 33180
US
Registrar: DOTSTER
Domain Name: GET-HYPER.COM
Created on: 18-JAN-03
Expires on: 18-JAN-05
Last Updated on: 19-JUN-03
Administrative Contact:
McCarthy, Eric M. eric.mccarthy@get-hyper.com
HyperActive Corporation
19010 NE 29 Ave
Aventura, FL 33180
US
(305) 497-4000
(305) 497-4999
Technical Contact:
Hodges, Michael michael.hodges@get-hyper.com
HyperActive Corporation
19010 NE 29 Ave
Aventura, FL 33180
US
(305) 497-4000
(305) 497-4999
Domain servers in listed order:
NS1.NAMESERVE.NET
NS2.NAMESERVE.NET
NS3.NAMESERVE.NET
February 26th, 2004 at 4:20 am
$ host jaronbrass.com
jaronbrass.com has address 216.122.237.181
$ host get-hyper.com
get-hyper.com has address 216.122.237.181
February 26th, 2004 at 4:22 am
http://www.google.com/search?q=18851+NE+29th+Avenue+Aventura+Florida+33180
Hyper Active’s supposed headquarters address
February 26th, 2004 at 4:29 am
There’s also a site for the company here:
http://www.hacorporation.com/
February 26th, 2004 at 4:37 am
Oh yes and the Eric thing is a lie, he told me exactly the same story about the love of his life dying in a car crash, and that was well before November 2003.
February 26th, 2004 at 4:49 am
One more point and then I’m off….
If Ms. Susan Brass is such a good attorney and all, why can I not find any mention what-so-ever on the internet of a Susan Brass, Attorney at Law. No mention. No record in any Lawyer directory. Nothing.
February 26th, 2004 at 5:13 am
Well, It is Jarrons scare tactics. Nobody believe him. The tip off should be that no law enforcement agency is not open that late. When this story broke, even on the west coast it was past business hours.
Just more proof he is a liar now pretending to be a woman, especially his mom, how pathetic.
February 26th, 2004 at 5:23 am
Several things that I uncovered:
– JaronBrass.com and get-hyper.com both trace back to the same server. Kind of unusual, I think, for someone who claims that his company is one of the largest of its kind in Florida. This is made even stranger by the fact that on the “come visit my site!” image, there is a message at the top of the page stating that the site would be moving to its own private server.
– The so-called “error message” currently up on JaronBrass.com is hard-coded into the page’s source code. Furthermore, if Jaron could not in fact modify the contents of the site from wherever he supposedly is, why do you get a 404 error whenever you attempt to view pages that WERE there before instead of this alleged “error message?” Most servers, dedicated or not, provide a web-based form of access to files contained on the server.
– The points that others made concerning copyright law in the U.S. are correct. Any “copyright lawyer” worth his or her salt would know that it’s a huge gray area–anyone who creates any work AT ALL is IMMEDIATELY considered the copyright holder. Registration is a formality held over for people like authors who need/want, for financial reasons, proof that they did in fact create what they say they created.
– Doing a reverse phone number lookup on the phone numbers for Hyperactive reveals that neither of them are listed. Odd. Also strange: The BBB for Florida has no record of Hyperactive existing as a company.
– Jase, in his blog, mentions that he’s been with his partner for 11 years. Ironic, then, that Jaron also claims to have been with his partner for 11 years. After speaking to several individuals who talked with him at the time that the “tragedy” happened, I can only conclude that it didn’t actually happen and that his partner did not in fact exist.
– In his gallery, Jase claimed to be the person identified as “Eric” in the photos of the Amigo music video shoot repeatedly.
– I spoke with Jaron some time ago before I was aware that multiple people were having the same doubts about him as me. I noticed the disparity between the lean and fit model he claimed to be and the pudgy guy who he turned out to be, for which he had a “convenient” explanation–he claimed to be suffering from hypoglycemia and a “bone condition” that was causing him to “shrink.” Interestingly enough he called this condition “macular degeneration,” which is not a bone condition at all–in fact, it’s an eye disease that mostly strikes elderly people and causes blindness eventually. Moreover, after doing quite a bit of research, I could find absolutely no musculoskeletal disorders even roughly approximating the symptoms that he described. I chalk it up to a rather convenient “excuse” for being an entirely different person.
– I can definitely say with 100% certainty that there were unusual disparities between his blog entries and the things he told me, when I conversed with him. For instance, he claimed to be moving to an entirely different building, a condo owned by his grandmother or something–yet in his blog he said he was moving “downstairs.”
– To go back to a piece of evidence given prior, simple math is quite useful. Jaron claimed to be 28. However, the “web award” site that someone uncovered, featuring a picture of a portly young Jaron, stated that in 1999 Jaron was in 11th grade. Most 11th graders are what, 15 or 16, maybe 17? At most, that means Jaron would be 22 now, not 28, and I severely doubt that any 22-year old would have been in a long-term relationship since they were 9, 10 or 11.
– If you dig deep enough, you’ll notice glaring disparities between Jaron’s old biography page on his site, his Orkut profile, and things he said in person. For instance, I inquired about his tattoo. He told me that he had had it removed. Yet it remained in both of his profiles… why? Additionally, at least half of his old bio was lifted directly from Jase’s, even down to the “Meeting Michael” (changed to “Meeting Eric”) link.
– Does anyone else find it odd that Jaron doesn’t/didn’t have a single photograph of “himself” with his partner of 11 years?
– One more disconnect concerning his website. When I asked him some technical questions about Movable Type, he hemmed and hawed and made some vague excuse about how he barely knew how it worked because it was “so highly customized.” Seems unlikely, considering his professed career, but it makes sense considering the blatant rip-off of Jase’s site.
– Jaron claimed at one point that he had won a Webby award. He didn’t give me any specifics other than that. He did also claim to be connected to several groups including SAG and AFTRA; I don’t know if anyone’s thought to check with those groups to see if a Jaron Brass is registered with them.
– Jaron claimed that Hyperactive had purchased an ENTIRE building on the Avenue of the Americas in Manhattan to move to. Anyone who knows anything about New York whatsoever would laughed out loud at this, just as I did–even the biggest companies, including News Corporation and NBC, only take up a handful of floors in a handful of buildings. Jaron is only kidding himself if he thinks anyone would believe such a preposterous lie. And besides, when do entire BUILDINGS in Manhattan ever go up for sale?!
I realize full well that if Jaron is monitoring this forum, which seems likely considering the circumstances, he might be able to identify who I am based on this information. And in light of the emotional problems that he directly caused me, I feel that it’s entirely appropriate to share this information publicly to expose the deception that is–well, hopefully, WAS–going on.
February 26th, 2004 at 8:04 am
His web of Lies is crumbling before our Eyes
February 26th, 2004 at 10:16 am
This is great, well done everyone, we’re really getting a terrific body of evidence here.
Jaron’s attempts to intimidate are simply laughable, good luck to him try t sue me or subpoena me. We don’t have subpoenas here as far as I’m aware, and if he wants to sue anyone the onus will be on him to prove what we are saying are lies, not the other way around.
Someone asked why he video chatted with me. To be honest I’m not sure, I think he believed he could get me to swallow the notion that he had only recently gained the weight. I’m not sure what Jaron’s motivations are, to some degree I think he is simply a collector, of people. It’s clear he has difficulty socially, and I guess this is the only ‘contact’ he can really achieve.
Please please please keep them coming!
February 26th, 2004 at 12:06 pm
Have you compared the originating IP addresses of the messages from Jaron and his mother?
If he’s in the Bahamas and she’s in Florida, they shouldn’t match.
February 26th, 2004 at 12:39 pm
“Often times, many people feel that attaching “Copyright” to a web page, article or the like constitutes a valid copyright. Unfortunately, it does not. Nor can Jase properly license his content or site design to Jaron without a proper copyright.”
Where did she go to school - the Dipshits School of Law? Did their Intellectual Property course consist of watching record industry propaganda videos? Or could they not afford a copy of the Berne Convention and the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act?
February 26th, 2004 at 4:33 pm
Yesterday “Ms. Brass” also threatened me with legal action. I replied to her e-mail and demanded that any further correspondence must come from her law firm’s corporate e-mail system as well as in hardcopy form on her law firm’s official letterhead. Not a peep from her since then.
February 26th, 2004 at 4:47 pm
Has anyone tried calling the phone number listed on the Hyperactive website? Jaron’s voice picks up and states that “you’ll be placed in the queue.” Interestingly enough the “fax number” listed states to “press 3,” yet there are no options available.
February 26th, 2004 at 6:20 pm
So you totally befriended this person “in search of the truth”? Am I the only one who can see the wrong in this?
February 26th, 2004 at 6:29 pm
Presumably you are the Chris that spies for Jaron over at the metropol forums? I didn’t befriend him to discover the truth, I befriended him to make a friend, plain and simple.
He chose to lie, lie and lie again, basing our friendship on manipulation and deceit. And then when I challenged him privately about it, he attempted to make me feel like I was the liar. He used a made up bereavement to make me feel bad. Don’t you see that as twisted? He’s been practically stalking some guys over the phone to the degree that they’ve had the change their phone number.
If you see this as acceptable or not deserving of investigation then i suggest you seriously reconsider your principals and beliefs about how to treat people. He’s a bully and a liar, he’ll say anything to get what he wants.
February 26th, 2004 at 6:31 pm
Let me just add, he’s never apologised even once. When he knew I’d sussed him out, he had the nerve to message me saying only: “I thought I could trust you.”
He’s got some nerve.
February 26th, 2004 at 6:36 pm
By definition, if you befriend someone you are certainly not their friend.
You’re doing exactly what you state he’s doing: stopping at nothing to find out what you want to. Why involve Jaron’s relations, etc, into this?
February 26th, 2004 at 6:59 pm
I think you should invest in a dictionary Chris, ‘by definition’ if you ‘befriend’ someone you become their friend.
befriend
v : become friends with; “John and Eric soon became friends”
February 26th, 2004 at 9:08 pm
Haha, sorry, but I cannot help but laugh at this.
That has got to be some of the best investigative work I’ve seen for quite some time!
And I wonder why anyone would ever stand up for a guy that is abusive, lying, and does nothing but use people as objects to manipulate …
Good thing someone blew the whistle on him - people like that should get what they deserve.
André
February 26th, 2004 at 9:13 pm
I wonder if dotcomboi is the same guy that supposedly made the new jingles for the BBC World, and also tried to claim that he worked as a journalist from time to time, being involved in both the BBC World Service (radio), and the BBC World (TV), owning his own company making jingles and whatnot in florida?
(No-one would work as a journalist for worldservice for anything else than kicks, if owning a company which made tons of money) …
February 26th, 2004 at 10:42 pm
Sorry, Lee, I may have confused the definition of befriend there, but my base concept remains the same (and I’m sure you understand what I’m implying by that word).
Put simply, what right did you have to create a dossier on this individual for others’ enjoyment, why did you post private correpondance between you and him onto your site and why did you pretend you liked him even though you were just “evidence gathering” all the while? Isn’t that actually quite sick?
And don’t even say “He did blah blah blah first” - two wrongs don’t make a right. You’re morally - perhaps not factually but morally - wrong, Lee, there’s no two ways about it.
February 26th, 2004 at 10:43 pm
Sorry, forgot to mention the harrassment and uninvited involvement of his relatives (the list’s so long).
February 26th, 2004 at 11:28 pm
Chris, the fact that this may be entertaining is not the point, that was not it’s primary goal. The main reason for this blog post was to protect others and put an end to his abuse of trust.
Jaron has done more than simply lie about who he is to many many people, but he’s abused trusts, intimidated and bullied. He has actually forced people to bar his number or change their own. Also, if you think that’s actually his mum you’re mad, also he dragged his ‘mum’ into it, no one else.
I’ve not harassed him, i’ve not even communicated with him since the day he did the ichat a/v and i knew for sure he’d been lying all along.
And I’ll point out again that we had become friendly way before i first had any reason to be suspicious.
And anyway, at best I’m doing people a favor, at worst I’m a journalist reporting on a story of valid concern within these small communities.
February 27th, 2004 at 3:30 am
Don’t forget, Lee, that he also toyed with emotions, damaged relationships and created a nuisance of himself, lying all the while. I see where Chris is coming from but you are entirely in the right here.
February 27th, 2004 at 10:10 am
LOL! Thanks Jaron!
I deleted the other 20 or so duplicates of that comment you made, and your IP address from where you were running the malicious DOS script (68.209.99.209) has been banned from the system.
This page isn’t going anywhere, neither your phony legal threats nor your feeble attempts to crash the system will succeed.
But thanks for visiting!
February 27th, 2004 at 3:42 pm
Well it gets worse, I’m in contact with a few people who have made some (well documented) claims that are certainly criminal matters. It seems Jaron has only narrowly avoided the law at some points in the past. Some of this new evidence casts grave doubt on the authorship of not only his blog, but his company and clients sites too.
EDIT
While what is written above is entirely true that these claims have come in, I of course cannot verify whether or not they are true. I have no specific reason to doubt them as they do seem to tally with my own experience and many other peoples’. However after querying from Jaron I feel it important to make sure I’m clear that aside from the threat and DOS attacks, which may or may not have come from Jaron, I personally have no criminal matters to bring against Jaron.
I’ll try to bring you any hard evidence i can, but several of the people involved are very reluctant to expose themselves, fearing what action jaron may take, and i’m not talking legal action here.
But remember everybody, united we stand, divided we fall.
February 27th, 2004 at 6:46 pm
Whatever evidence you can find will certainly be interesting.
February 27th, 2004 at 7:23 pm
Great detective work…
…Jaron will have a lot to worry about very soon, of that I am sure.
Perhaps we should put together a JaronFAQ website, replete with all his known/recorded posts and communications with others?
Of course, there would always be a right to reply for Jaron.
February 27th, 2004 at 7:29 pm
Well Lee - I’m surprised my DOS attack failed considering how crap MovableType is. But don’t worry — I know far too many proxy servers out there so I can easily continue if I wanted to.
I’ve narrowly avoided the law? I wouldn’t call unpaid parking fines narrowly avoiding the law but I trust your sources. And should that not be “authority” instead of “authorship”? Or did your secondary school education only teach you how to falsify a friendship with someone only to bleed them dry?
Honestly your sources should come forward with whatever information they have. If they’re being honest I don’t see why they would be reluctant to share the information you’ve managed to uncover. That is, of course, unless the information is phony. After all, you all suspect me of being totally harmless on the legal front so it would only make sense for them to reveal it all. I don’t think there’s much more I can do than that.
BUT…
I can do far worse than legal action. I’m old enough to own a gun, and I’m certainly in contact with enough people in the UK, desparate for cash, to do it for me. Shame really you confirmed your home address during our prior conversations. I’d strongly warn you to watch your back Mr Parry.
And indeed — united we stand, divided we fall Lee. Unfortunately, when you do fall - literally - I wouldn’t be surprised if there was no behind behind you to catch you.
The lot of you may find this entertaining but I certainly don’t. It’s a severe invasion of my privacy and I will do whatever I can to put a stop to it using whatever method necessary — legal or otherwise.
February 27th, 2004 at 7:53 pm
Jaron,
It is an offence to use telecommunications systems in the UK to transmit threatening messages.
I sincerely hope this is a prank. If it is, it would be advisable to tell everyone it is not you saying this as you will be in big trouble.
And, if you are going to shoot someone, it is the height of stupidity to announce your intentions on an internet forum. Have you been speaking with those lawyers/solicitors of yours again? :-/
February 27th, 2004 at 8:21 pm
johnyboy: great minds think alike, i think a separate database detailing all the cons, threats, lies etc. That way people can find out the truth, and undo the abuse.
Jaron: if that really was you that posted then you are certainly either more foolish or more insane than I had previously believed. I’ve now had plenty of opportunity to read how you attempt to threaten and bully people into silence. It seems many people have been just frightened enough to do it too.
Well not me Jaron, it stops here. I’m the guy that will play the ouija board. You know even DOS attacks are against the law. Before today I hadn’t really considered taking legal action against you, but after what’s been emailed to me today by a couple of people, and now what you’ve posted above, I’ll admit I’m thinking about it. Now it might be you’d only get a fine, but at worst you could get a few months in jail, and somehow I don’t think you’d like it in there.
You’ll have to excuse me if I don’t rush out and buy a bulletproof jacket, but it’s just not the look I’m going for this season.
You know that’s funny is that if you’d just held your hands up and said “I’m sorry. I lied to lots of you, I’ve got serious problems, I hope I haven’t caused too much upset.” we’d probably all have let it go. But instead you decided to open another bag of chips, guzzle some cola, and write pathetic childish lies for attention.
February 27th, 2004 at 9:41 pm
Geez what a story.
But maybe it’s time to leave the poor kid alone? I mean, he messed up, and he continues to act certifiably insane. At some point, you gotta decide whether you want to abuse someone who is quite possibly mentally handicapped or just drop it…?
If this does turn criminal I know a good private investigator who will put a stop to it. But I’d suggest doing your part by not continuing to provoke Jaron or you won’t look very good in court.
I understand that you wanted to oust a fake person from your forums. I understand that you wanted to point out copyright violations. But making the story so public, even posting it on an orkut forum with over 500 members… I think the punishment doesn’t fit the crime.
Regards,
Pete
February 27th, 2004 at 10:39 pm
Nice job dietsoda. I’m very impressed. All of this investigative footwork must have taken an eternity!
Cheers,
Zhivago
February 27th, 2004 at 10:41 pm
To quote some wired news rant:
“Sure, it’s kind of funny at first, funny like the story of the kid that had a video of him pretending to be a Star Wars character get out onto the Net, and then had to be put into a mental institution to deal with the trauma. Not so funny then, huh, people?”
(http://www.wired.com/news/rants/0,2350,60266,00.html)
February 27th, 2004 at 11:27 pm
At least if Jaron gets put into an institution, he won’t be a danger to others, as he clearly seems to be
February 27th, 2004 at 11:29 pm
Pete, honestly I appreciate what you’re saying, but this isn’t being done to punish him. Some people were quite significantly worried about some of the things he’s said to them, and in the past he’s gone to great lengths to have any evidence of previous very similar behavior removed from sites, not on any valid legal basis but through manipulation. I simply wanted to put an end to the possibility of him being able to do that again, in time I’ll edit down the article and comments to provide a more concise and dispassionate version that doesn’t vilify Jaron, but that will then stay online and be available to anyone who can use google.
Although I can accept to some degree the argument that any behavior like this is in some way due to mental illness, there are many crimes of which it could also be said, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that something shouldn’t be done to protect people in the future. I hope in time to persuade some of the people that currently are unwilling or unable to tell their stories through fear of retribution, to come forward, and help demonstrate that for some people this has gone beyond simple online community identity fraud.
I’m also now re-enabling access from Jaron’s IP address, as I’d hope he’s realised a DOS attack will get him nowhere. Jaron has emailed me privately with an ‘apology’ of sorts. I have yet to respond to this or decide in what way it may or may not affect anything.
He has made requests for me to show him the info I’ve been given in confidence, I’d like to make sure it’s known that whatever happens I have no intention of doing so unless asked by the contributers themselves.
I won’t insist that people are nice to Jaron in their comments as I understand some will still be angry about how they were treated by him, but I will say that isn’t necessarily the point of this article and associated comments.
February 28th, 2004 at 12:45 am
INFORMATION NOT GUARANTEED 100% ACCURATE.
SSNs HIDDEN BUT ARE AVAILABLE IF NECESSARY.
REMOVED
Sorry to say that I did censor this post. I appreciate the spirit of investigation that went into it, but on balance and after an IM from Jaron I wasn’t entirely comfortable with publishing his parents addresses. No offense to whoever posted it, it bore consideration.
Suffice to say though that Jaron did admit to me as a result of the post that his mother is not of course a lawyer. So the point is made I think without needing to keep the details.
February 28th, 2004 at 2:50 am
Quoting:
“At least if Jaron gets put into an institution, he won’t be a danger to others, as he clearly seems to be”
Who says he is a danger to others? No one has come forward saying that he has done anything to change their lives. He has not caused bodily harm to anyone. And no one has said they’ve actually met him. So I don’t understand?
I think some of the people on this page are a danger to themselves.
February 28th, 2004 at 2:55 am
Is the fact that he’s threatening to shoot people (or have them shot) not enough for you?
February 28th, 2004 at 3:01 am
no one knows if Jaron actually posted that since Lee blocked his IP address until tonight. It probably wasnt him.
February 28th, 2004 at 3:11 am
So then if no one knows, how can you be so sure he’s no threat?
February 28th, 2004 at 3:48 am
No one knows but it is not like he’s shown up on someones doorstep. He probably couldn’t hurt a fly.
February 28th, 2004 at 4:46 am
Are you willing to bet your life on that?
February 28th, 2004 at 5:33 am
Probably not but id rather be stuck in a room with him than most of the poeple on here. Yeah he did lie but he (and no one else) deserve to be treated like they are being tracked by the CIA or MI5. Everyone lies and everyone has been lied to before including me. It is a fact of life that we all have to deal with.
This guy is a phony and so what. But he probably has a real life with real friends outside of the context of the internet. Surely crap like this is unnecessary and will only hurt whatever life he has. He is a human being.
If I were inhis shoes I certainly woudnt want something like this on the net for other people to find out even if i did have a gray past. I dont think it is a question that people sould know but rather letting them find out on their own. After i got burned a number of times i learned that if it was too good to be true it probably isnt. So now i take everythign i hear with a grain of salt. you all should too.
If he does have a legit life (im sure he does) stuff like this is only going to cause him grief. if he is ont he level with the poeple he knows and they find this stuff its only going to cauase them to question him. When what they know already is the truth. So again it’s only going to cause harm.
We’re all at fault for believing him and it is isnt up to us to take justice into our own hands. People should find out fgor themselves if he is a fraud. And then make their own decision about what to do about it. Airing soomeone’s “dirty laundry” is a violation of privacy and something that primary school children do during break. I find it so incredible to believe that there are so many adults here who play such childish games.
And no i’m not trying to defend his actions, but im saying that what you all are doing is just so wrong. You say he damaged relationships, hurt emotions and bruised feelings. I dont see it. I think its just a bandwagon that people are conveniently jumping on and fabricating stories to fit what has been previously said. And I only say this based on events here and at Metropol. Conversations and webcam images and ‘things he said’ seem to appear out of thin air. And the people who say them have to start by saying ‘he did a webcam with me a few months ago’ or ‘he said this to me last year’ or ‘on msn he said he was moving’. If u knew it and at the time could prove it why didnt you post it? You couldve ‘exposed’ him such a long time ago. But no one came forward. Until now.
And its funny too. I remember using IChat on a Mac and trying to get a webcam chat with him going. He did it. And instead of seeing him live television was being played through. he said it was because IChat can use any dv source and he has a video digitiser (4Mac or ForMac is the name istr) which was plugged in. I saw the picture and heard the sound. So what would prevent him from recording something from someone else and playing it back just to wind you all up? if i coudl see television surely he could plug in a video and play it? And if he was trying to pretend to be someone else, why would he suddenly do a video chat and ‘reveal’ his true self when he knew that it would be immediately posted to a forum? It just doesn’t make sense.
But you all can carry on and do what you like. there doesn’t seem to be any voice of reason here. Just character assassination.
February 28th, 2004 at 6:07 am
i also forgot to say that in some ways I think he is one step ahead of us. i think much of what he has done is a way of winding us up now that we’re on his trails again. It makes me laugh when i think about it. it’s like a bad comedy.
He’s so good at covering his tracks and it is as if he plants bits here and there for us all to find and comment on when we uncover them. LIke the portfolio on his site with the BBC-like countdowns and idents. He knew we’d pick up on it straight away and comment on it. And his including the real BBC World countdown was another thing. Or just today on Metropol the whois information in his domains for the high school referencing different people. After we find it, it disappears stirring up more discussion. It is like a grand scheme to play us and wind us up when he knows full well exactly what he is doing. He knew he couldnt keep his site private forever so he probably copied Jase’s site to make it look legitimate not knowing Jase would find out. i think it was just to rouse our curiosity, filling it with truthful bits and exaggerated bits about his ‘travels’ and ‘life’.
His plan (if i’m right) obviously works otherwise this page wouldnt exist.
February 28th, 2004 at 11:06 am
Chris,
I think you’re way off mark here. This is a grand scheme to play us, but not in the way you think.
Jaron is obviously at a low point in his life - he knows what he wants but he is incapable of getting it at the moment.
I personally think this whole thing is about Jaron living out a fantasy on the internet, and his ego gets boosted every time someone falls for it. He can project a different person, a successful and attractive person online, very different from how he perceives himself.
The fact he would go to such lengths to tell the lies to us first, then this spymac forum (this time “backing his story up with evidence on his blog”) suggests he is desperate to be accepted, not as himself however, but as the person he wishes to be.
Chris, the only person who has assassinated Jaron’s chances of making online friends is Jaron himself. And whilst I can understand your defence on him on almost humanitarian grounds, I am a little puzzled by the effort with which you stick up for him.
February 28th, 2004 at 12:21 pm
Chris, you seem to be making the point that the things he has done are so inconsequential that they don’t matter and can’t really of hurt or upset anyone. If that is true then exposing him is also inconsequential.
It’s clear from what you’re saying though that he has you wrapped around his little finger. You were suggesting that the overweight man on iChat wasn’t him and that it may have been a video feed of someone else? That’s ludicrous, possible, but ludicrous. Someone else out there did have another picture of him from recent time, please come forward and send it in so we can all compare.
You talk about people making these stories up, well I can’t vouch for everyone that’s commented here, but I personally communicated with 8 or 10 people BEFORE this article went online and their stories are strikingly similar.
Jaron has been here before, I’ve read correspondence between him and other people who discovered the truth about him. He starts by threatening, intimidating, trying to frighten you into silence. Then he tries an apology of sorts, but one where he attempts to say “we’ve both done wrong”.
The crazy thing is that if Jaron could openly post an apology here, some sort of explanation, and give up once and for all on trying to justify or excuse his behavior, most of us would let it slide. I mean it’s actually quite interesting. If from now on when he makes online friends he’s 100% open about having been a pathological liar I think that frankness and openness would win him friends.
Jaron needs to co-opt this process, perhaps turning his own blog site into a simple confession page, and a Q&A where he’d answer people’s questions and respond to them as honestly as he could explaining what made him do what he did. I think he’d win some respect for that.
February 28th, 2004 at 5:49 pm
This is hilarious. GREAT POST!
February 28th, 2004 at 7:04 pm
WOW..Lee, if anyone ever stalks me, I want you on the case!
February 28th, 2004 at 7:34 pm
You say Lee that you did a search of accidents in the area of the Apple Store in Miami. Surely you did an address lookup of jaron’s home and the store? There’s a considerable distance that one would travel, as seen here:
http://www.mapquest.com/directions/
44 minutes and almost 30 miles is a pretty big distance to cover. And in the UK accident reports are treated confidential unless the parties want the information released. I woudl think that the US has similar policies esp when a death is involved.
the only nearest stores are in Boca Raton and Aventura (where Jaron lives) but the latter store only opened last month according to Apple’s web page so he couldn’t have worked there. And Boca Raton (by Mapquest) is almost the same distance in the opposite direection (north). If he said he worked in Miami he couldn’t have worked in Boca Raton and even that store opened late last year too.
So u have no right to say that he’s lying if you dont have proof that this accident took place esp if you dont know exactly where it took place.
February 28th, 2004 at 7:59 pm
Excellent spy job - I always thought dotcomboi was hot until he started posting these airplaine pictures, claiming he would start his own airline soon, that’s when I filed him under “phony”. Did you see those?
Oh, and is the whole “research” thing the reason why you enquired about how to delete an account on Spymac the other day? I hope it is, because even though we never really “talked”, I always thought you were a nice, interesting guy - and I never thought you were phony either
February 28th, 2004 at 8:29 pm
The cops in Aventura Florida have been contated about this board. Mr. Brasss has far more to fear then his fake identity now. Threating someone is not only a felony in his home state, but ccould be federal too. They are taking the matter seriously, so Mr. Brasss you better watch what you threaten.
February 28th, 2004 at 9:07 pm
Chris, I’m not quite sure what you are talking about, you seem to disagree, agree, then disagree again. Jaron said that his boyfriend Eric who worked in the Apple Store Miami had dies in a car crash in November 2003. There were only 3 or 4 crashes reported in any of the newspapers for Miami and Florida as a whole. In none of them did a young man die. Additionally several people have said that they were told the same thing, but the date used wasn’t 2003, as it wasn’t even 2003 yet at that point. Also we know Jaron is probably approx 23, so if he’d been with an Eric for 11 years they’d have started seeing each other when Jaron was 11 or 12. The fact that this is all bull isn’t really being debated anymore Chris.
As to the ‘threat’, Jaron claimed in an email that it wasn’t him, and indeed it was from different IP address. However I know Jaron has used an anonymous proxy before, and so this doesn’t really tell us anything either way. Even if it were Jaron though, I’d have thought he probably regrets it now, and I’m not sure if it’s worth prosecuting him over.
oh, and thanks silvergirl!
February 29th, 2004 at 12:25 am
That’s not the point lee. The point is that even accidents that happen at the junction i live at dont always make it into the newspaper. Unless you go through records theres no way to prove or disprove the story.
What would settle the issue is if Jaron was forthcoming with additional information like a police traffic accident report or something else like a certificate of death.
Im sure if you saw that you;d still not believe him because of the narrow-minded individuals you are but I would. You cant forge a police report and certainly cant forge a certificate of death.
February 29th, 2004 at 1:09 am
Chris (or is it Jaron?), he claimed it before november 2003 too, so therefore either he’s a frightening good clairvoyant of “The Dead Zone” (http://imdb.com/title/tt0085407/) proportions, or he’s lying.
February 29th, 2004 at 1:19 am
Amazing!
I thought I was the only one:
http://redmonkey.typepad.com/dv8/2004/02/boys_will_be_ot.html
February 29th, 2004 at 1:56 am
I would be fascinated to hear what Chris has to say about the similar “dead friend car crash” story in redmonkeydv8’s article.
February 29th, 2004 at 2:48 am
Something else interesting, yesterday when Jaron AIM’d me to ask me to remove his parents contact info from the comments, he IM’d me from an account called “jorys2000″.
Now what’s odd about this is that there was another spymac member called “FSBoy0″, this guy and jaron were thick as thieves, flirting with each other and claiming to be seeing each other. FABoy0’s name was supposedly “Jory”, similar to jorys2000. Coincidence eh? FSBoy0 hasn’t been around much lately.
Now either Jaron was obsessed with Jory, or Jory is Jaron.
February 29th, 2004 at 5:19 am
It appears that Jaron may be Jory as well… check out where the site resolves to.
Traceroute Results:
1 BGW-VE3.dedicatedns.com (209.239.32.1) 0.416 ms 0.350 ms 0.263 ms
2 208.49.89.193 (208.49.89.193) 0.760 ms 0.496 ms 0.493 ms
3 dca-edge-01.inet.qwest.net (65.113.64.29) 1.979 ms 1.595 ms 1.486 ms
4 dca-core-03.inet.qwest.net (205.171.9.85) 1.726 ms 1.636 ms 1.703 ms
5 dca-core-02.inet.qwest.net (205.171.9.49) 1.976 ms 1.888 ms 1.910 ms
6 atl-core-02.inet.qwest.net (205.171.8.153) 17.725 ms 17.465 ms 17.328 ms
7 atl-core-01.inet.qwest.net (205.171.21.149) 17.096 ms 17.281 ms 17.124 ms
8 atx-edge-01.inet.qwest.net (205.171.221.18) 17.310 ms 17.084 ms 17.110 ms
9 genesis2net.net-gw.qwest.net (63.237.0.30) 17.381 ms 17.482 ms 17.321 ms
10 64.224.0.68 (64.224.0.68) 17.217 ms 79.682 ms 21.560 ms
11 get-hyper.com (216.122.237.181) 18.005 ms 17.718 ms 17.539 ms
February 29th, 2004 at 6:04 am
Lee, I just tried to send you an email but it stated your account was over quota… another DOS attack?
February 29th, 2004 at 10:18 am
Chris, I’m going to reply to your earlier post up there about people coming forward months later about seeing him on camera.
Now for your information I made it very public at the time what I had seen. I contacted a number of people of which Jaron fooled and did indeed send them a picture.
Right now I have no way of showing you anything because my PC was upgraded and everypart replace - and my server was infected with a virus and I lost all the data on it.
Chris, you are merely “making up” your version of the story to back what your saying - quite frankly I read your post and see nothing but contradictions. You’ve been had pal, I don’t know what keeps you holding on to the lies but it must be pretty good. I do fear I know what is keeping you going but I must say your a little too young to be getting involved in all this. Your like 15-16 are you not?
February 29th, 2004 at 12:21 pm
Well well, there is no Jory. What a surprise.
BTW, if getting in touch via email then please use webmaster@dietsoda.net and not my .mac address. It isn’t full up anymore but .mac seems a bit hokey.
February 29th, 2004 at 12:48 pm
If there’s no Jory, how did he get an account with the Pennsylvania College of Technology?
February 29th, 2004 at 1:01 pm
EDIT
I removed the address at the request of the owner jory who didn’t want to be associated indefinitely with the jaron story. All it proved was that his site was hosted on Jaron’s server/account. Jory said that Jaron offered to host his site for him.
Mentions Jaron L. Brass as “Editor”. Maybe the Jory site is something Jaron is doing in the “real world”…
The hotlink for Jaron’s name links back to jaronbrass.com.
February 29th, 2004 at 1:21 pm
Hmm… well then perhaps Jory is real after all, but has been so drawn in to Jaron’s fiction that he now feels embarrassed about it? I can’t be sure, but I have a vague recollection of FSBoy0/Jory claiming he had met Jaron. So I wonder what it meant that Jaron was using an AIM account that would seem to belong to Jory.
It’s almost like Jaron has constructed a network of ‘cells’ with different forums and different online ‘friends’ in each one, and with Jaron able to move between them.
February 29th, 2004 at 1:30 pm
Looks like Joshua Appleman links to both Jory and Jaron Brass on his site, and was at Penn.
http://juniper.appleman.us:81/
and
http://juniper.appleman.us:81/links.html
February 29th, 2004 at 3:14 pm
Lee, as more discoveries are made, and a police report being filed due to the death threat, I would encourage you and/or the person who notified the police to make sure that Jaron is not also engaged in Social Security fraud. The SSNs I gave you previously show Jaron using the SSN of a 73 year old woman that used to live in the same location:
(feel free to delete this information)
Note the SS# & the Date after the address:
EDITED
I’ve removed the SSN’s at the Request of Jaron. Of course as with the previous info I’ve not deleted it and is still available upon request for any authorities acting in an official capacity.
Suffice to say, A Lady named JANET J JUSEN lived at Jarons address previously, and after Jaron moved into this address with one SSN, he later was recorded at that address with the previous lady’s SSN.
Additionally Jaron told me in response to the first set of data i removed that JANET J JUSEN was deceased.
February 29th, 2004 at 4:30 pm
For some reason, I think the Jory & Jaron are actually separate people.
However, I do wonder is Jaron in these photos:
EDIT*
it wasn’t jaron, and i’ve removed links to this site at Jory’s request.
(from Jory’s Website)
February 29th, 2004 at 5:11 pm
what does “BASS LEWIS” mena on those ssn records?
February 29th, 2004 at 5:14 pm
http://www.cti-usa.com/
http://www.cti-usa.com/news/story_091401_1.htm?archive=1
Has anyone come across this particular site yet?? Check out the second link listed. An archived news story about CTI, USA’s new website. And look who was quoted in the third paragraph. None other than Jaron Brass himself.
Has anyone ever heard of CTI, USA??? And what makes it so much more suspicious, the company is headquartered in none other than Fort Lauderdale/Miami metropolitan area.
February 29th, 2004 at 5:40 pm
EDIT
I removed the address at the request of the owner jory who didn’t want to be associated indefinitely with the jaron story. All it proved was that his site was hosted on Jaron’s server/account. Jory said that Jaron offered to host his site for him.
This just keeps getting more and more interesting.
February 29th, 2004 at 5:43 pm
The old UK address for the London office did check out, though the website look is identical to one of Jaron’s own web operations early last year. Interestingly it doesn’t look like the site has been regularly maintained recently…
I suspect it could be another “real life” small website job that Jaron has done, like the Jack Hayward High School, and possibly Jory’s site. After all if CTI is based in Florida it might had made sense for him to work for a local company?
On the other hand he may have created a fake web presence for a real company, though I think this is unlikely.
February 29th, 2004 at 6:05 pm
CTI does have it’s own block of IP addresses to itself, unlike Hyperactive which is hosted at HostPro. Interestingly, their main site (www.hostpro.com) seems to be down too.
CTI Group UU-208-209-178 (NET-208-209-178-0-1)
208.209.178.0 - 208.209.178.255
February 29th, 2004 at 6:27 pm
I’m not sure what the connection is, but Joshua Appleman’s link page (http://juniper.appleman.us:81/links.html) is the EXACT SAME set of links, minus most of the friends listed, that Jaron had posted on his site–I know this, because I noticed the link to Citibank, which I commented on and Jaron stated that “Citibank is a piece of shit.” Either Jaron plagiarized that from Joshua’s page, or something else is going on.
February 29th, 2004 at 6:48 pm
http://support.get-hyper.com/
hi-larious
February 29th, 2004 at 8:02 pm
Yes, the CTI site uses a design of which ‘Hyperactive’ started using as it’s first design. This design shortly changed… what mistifies me more is the Hyperactive logo. Those from Metroblah and TvF will know MrTomServo did that logo and didn’t get paid for it. What happened with that whole situation?
I never quite understood why MrT did that work for free?
February 29th, 2004 at 9:13 pm
For what it’s worth, istr MrToms saying that they had resolved the situation on Metropol.
And HostPro is now Interland (www.interland.com) according to google.
February 29th, 2004 at 9:46 pm
[EDIT: Lee, you unblocked my static IP to view your site but I can’t post comments. I had to use dial-up to do this, but to verify the authenticity of this post you can check the IP and see that it resolves back to Bellsouth.net, my local ISP]
This is the real Jaron — you can check the IP. I just thought it would be appropriate to try and clear up some of the crap circulating. Whether or not you believe it is up to you but most of it should be able to be confirmed through third party sources.
I worked for them as a web designer and network administrator for nearly a year back in 2000 and 2001. I designed their website and helped with an office move from a 17th Street located (in Fort Lauderdale) to their present address on North Federal Highway. I also helped to build/establish eNetCafe - an internet cafe - designed for maritime employees who are based at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale.
If you’re wondering what CTI Group is — it’s a maritime staffing organisation that hires people to work on cruise ships and provides crew services, like money transfer and ethnic products. According to them it was one of the biggest in the world. I don’t know. The site wasnt created as a hoax, and I’m sure if you call the numbers listed on their page you’ll see it is a legitimate place of business.
As per the original post the information was deemed not 100% accurate. The first post accurately revealed my social security number. And — the post also showed the SSN that supposedly belongs to my father. I know that SSN is not his (as per my health insurance card) so the information is not accurate unless my father was stealing someone else’s identity as well. As for the connection with Janet Jusen, she was a friend of my grandmother’s who I assist every now and then, including grocery shopping, doctor’s appointments and the like. The fact that these bits say I’m using here SSN is completely wrong, but considering I have made phone calls, appointments and other things for her — with her information — it’s no surprise that we’re linked. Afte