TALIBAN PROPAGANDA WATCH: Is It REALLY the Taliban’s PayPal Fundraising Page?

Remember the site looking like it was a Taliban fundraising page whose address was one letter different from the propaganda page?

Well, on November 11 this year, on a terrorist forum, there was a posting (Arabic, Google English and PDF of both at non-terrorist site) warning about that very site – here’s what Google says it says:

Peace be upon you
I want to inquire of you my dear brother on this site, who says he has pleaded for the Islamic emirate and requests to donate to the Taliban.
I think my brother to this site from the establishment of intelligence and wants to sign a brotherhood.
Take your precautions.

Later in the thread, it appears at least one poster suggests a more mercenary reason for the site if it’s not an official Taliban site:

Because even those who want to donate the sign to do so in a manner very naive
Because it puts a donation via paypal
This way those who do not know all the information about the address of the person Envoy to him and the donor and their phones to be linked to their accounts banking
I think that this is not the work of the intelligence of making a thief
The matter is simple
Bought the domain name on behalf of the emirate
Banner stolen brothers and put the name of the page as putting
But it is a simplicity to the way paypal

So, is this

• an official Taliban web site, taking advantage of tech to collect money from the internet masses;
• an interesting way for, in the words of those more clever than me, western agencies with (usually) three initials to trick folks into sharing both money and identify info; or
• a clever identity thief using Taliban graphics just to steal money and ID info?

It’s been more than a month since this posting, and I haven’t seen any official denial by the Taliban (please let me know if you have).  I don’t see any obvious reason for the Taliban to NOT issue a denial if it’s not their site – I’m guessing they wouldn’t want to be helping either foreign intelligence or an identity thief.

Then again, this is an organization that cuts off fingers of people who vote, so who knows?

Update (1): It looks official, folks!

وهذه الطريقة لمن لا يعلم بها كل المعلومات عن عنوان الشخص المبعوث اليه والمتبرع وتليفوناتهم وتكون متصله بحساباتهم البنكية This way those who do not know all the information about the address of the person Envoy to him and the donor and their phones to be linked to their accounts banking

فاظن ان هذه ليست اعمال مخابرات هذه من صنع لص I think that this is not the work of the intelligence of making a thief

الموضوع بسيط The matter is simple

اشترى دومين باسم الامارة Bought the domain name on behalf of the emirate
سرق بانر الاخوة ووضع اسم الصفحة كما يضعون Banner stolen brothers and put the name of the page as putting

الا انه من سذاجته وضع الطريقة ب paypal But it is a simplicity to the way paypal