-----Original Message-----
From: Hedden, Mark D Maj MIL USAF 1SOW/IO 
Sent: Monday, February 04, 2008 1:03 PM
To: Hurlburt OPSEC PM (Distribution List)
Cc: [Redacted]
Subject: AFTWS Clarification message

AF Together We Served (AFTWS) response and clarification on OPSEC brief sent on 31 Jan 2008 from this office 1 SOW/IO:

 

1 - TWS Inc has 5 dedicated servers. All located at #1 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA. 

2 - The domain name Togetherweserved.com is registered with Register.com which has its head offices in Nova Scotia. The domain name is privacy protected by Register.com to protect against spam but resolves to Nova Scotia on WHOIS.

3 - TWS Inc is not endorsed by any branch of the Armed Forces or Department of Defense. This is a standard legal disclaimer required to be placed on all websites which are not created directly by the USAF or DOD. The only civilian involvement with TWS Inc is the contractual agreement between TWS Inc and the provider of the BX, PX, Ship Store on respective sites. The owner of the software we use is a civilian and the owner of TWS Inc is a civilian. All the administrators are (a) retired members of the US Armed Forces or (b) prior service Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Coasties, or Marines

4 - TWS has launched two other websites - Marines.togetherweserved.com (MTWS), established in November 2003 and now with 150,000 Members, and Navy.Togetherweserved.com (NTWS), established in October, 2006 now with 320,000 Members - MTWS, NTWS and AFTWS are all under the umbrella of Togetherweserved Inc (TWS Inc). TWS Inc. is incorporated in the State of California, has its formal address in Chatsworth, California and files its taxes in California. TWS has no interests whatsoever in Germany or any other overseas country. The president of TWS Inc. is also president of Militel Calling Services (www.militel.com), a telecommunications company that has supplied international Calling Services to the US Military, stationed around the world, since 1994. Militel has been a regular advertiser in the Stars and Stripes for the past 15 years and currently advertises daily in their Middle East edition. This information is clearly displayed in the "About Us" section of the Home Page on AFTWS.

4a - In our first two years of operation, our websites were hosted with 1&1 Web Hosting the largest web-hosting company in the United States (www.1&1.com). 1&1 is based in Pennsylvania but is owned by a German parent company who also supply all their IP addresses. 

5 - TWS upholds its mission of providing a secure and enjoyable place for Servicemen and Women to tell their Service Story for the benefit of fellow Airmen and close Family. The majority of TWS Members are invited by existing Members thus maximizing the number of genuine Service personnel on board. All TWS websites have appointees in the form of the TWS Advisory Groups which routinely reviews Members profiles for being representative of a reasonable service history. The sites are also self policing via the Dispute and Verification mechanisms available on all Profiles which all Members can use to question or affirm any Member Profile. No security incidents on any of the TWS sites have ever been reported to TWS since our launch over 4 years ago.