Verizon temporarily locked traffic from some Web sites affiliated with the 4chan online forum on Monday after finding that some affiliate sites were apparently launching network attacks.

'Our network security system found traffic from some 4Chan web sites that had strong potential to disrupt the Verizon Wireless network, affecting our customers' use of their services,' Verizon spokesman Jeffrey Nelson wrote in an e-mail to CNET. 'With continuing investigation, and ensuring no current risk of harm, are giving the green-light to all 4Chan traffic. We will continue to monitor for any possibility of network harm.'

He also posted an explanation on Twitter: 'Never a block on 4Chan but some of its other sites were launching network attacks.'

It was unclear which sites were affected and exactly what the trouble was. Last July, AT&T blocked a 4chan server after another site launched a denial-of-service type of attack called a SYN Flood attack on the site.

The sites appear to have been 'explicitly blocked' for as long as three days, according to the 4chan status page.

4chan users, notorious for their Internet pranks, responded angrily by posting a fake story on CNN's iReport citizen journalism site alleging that AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson had died.

Some 4-chan affiliate sites were temporarily blocked by Verizon over the weekend.

(Credit: 4chan)

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