Malware to blame for site block

A military official says malware was to blame for the Southern Baptist Convention’s website being blocked on some military bases.

Lt. Col. Damien Pickart, a Defense Department spokesman, said the military’s software filters detected malware at SBC.net and blocked the website. The malware since has been removed from the website, and the denomination’s website has been unblocked, he said.

“The Department of Defense is not intentionally blocking access to this site,” Pickart told The Tennessean in an email. “The Department of Defense strongly supports the religious rights of service members, to include their ability to access religious websites like that of the SBC.”

Social media sites were buzzing April 25 over allegations that the military had blocked the website for other reasons.

Some Christians focused on the phrase “hostile content” and wondered whether the denomination’s traditional positions on abortion, gay marriage and the Bible were the reason the military was blocking the site.

Chris Chapman, the SBC Executive Committee’s director of information systems, said SBC.net — like the websites of many other organizations — is a target for hackers.

But SBC.net remains safe to visit, he said. — BP