Global Courant
A web address on a Maryland license plate inadvertently leads to the wrong destination.
Earlier this week, a commenter on Reddit pointed out that the URL at the bottom of the state license plate commemorating the War of 1812 is no longer associated with the Star-Spangled 200, Inc. – as it once was – but instead with a website promoting an online casino in the Philippines.
“I was never a fan of having a sign celebrating the War of 1812, but I’m even more upset now that I (and countless other Marylanders) are driving ads for international online gambling,” the post read.
Star-Spangled 200, Inc., was the non-profit organization that received commission for the purchase of the record, which funded bicentennial projects and events, and the URL used to lead to the organization’s website.
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The web address at the bottom of the Maryland “War of 1812” license plate now leads to an online gambling website. (Maryland MVA via FOX 5 DC)
The design in question, featuring a red, white and blue illustration of Fort McHenry and an American flag, was created to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 and was the standard between 2010 and 2016, according to Baltimore news outlet WBAL.
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The Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration told FOX 5 DC that there are approximately 798,000 active War of 1812 license plates on vehicles in the state with the URL “www.starspangled200.org” printed at the bottom.
While the sites on that web domain have varied over the years, according to the Internet database Wayback Machine, the URL has been pointing to the gambling site since December 2022.
An internet database showed that the URL “starspangled200.org” has led to the online gambling site since at least December 2022.
In a statement to FOX 5, the MVA said it “does not endorse any views or content on the current website using that URL and is working with the agency’s IT department to identify options to resolve the current issue.”
Global Courant
An August 2022 screenshot of the site showed that it contained information related to Baltimore’s Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail prior to the gambling promotion.
Fox News Digital contacted the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration for comment, but did not immediately hear back.
