www-aampmaps-com gained notoriety as a review platform for illicit massage businesses. While ostensibly starting as a directory, the site allegedly enabled illegal activities before being permanently shut down.
A Simple Listings Site Initially
Launched in 2009, AAMPMaps billed itself as a review and listing platform for Asian massage parlors, spanning from legitimate spas to more taboo erotic services.
In its early days, the site focused more neutrally on information like hours, location and reviews of massage establishments. However, AAMPMaps took an increasingly questionable turn as it expanded.
Descent into Enabling Illegal Conduct
Over time, AAMPMaps became overrun with detailed reviews of parlors notoriously engaging in illegal sex work. Rather than discourage this, the site openly profited from advertising these businesses.
Critics condemned AAMPMaps for essentially facilitating illicit activities and sex trafficking behind a facade of a review forum. The site operated in a legal gray zone, though public tolerance for such platforms was disappearing.
Shut Down Under Intensifying Pressure
In response to protests, web infrastructure providers revoked services enabling AAMPMaps around 2013. Unable to stay online, AAMPMaps shuttered permanently.
Little trace remains of the defunct site today, as most links have been scrubbed from search results. While starting innocently as a listings site, AAMPMaps veered into extremely problematic territory by declining to moderate abuses. Its rapid demise represents society’s rejection of digital platforms used to coordinate serious illegal acts.