Fatwa: # 19654
Category: Financial Transactions
Country: India
Date: 23rd December 2011

Title

is it permissible to develop and maintain a website which someone might use to cheat other people?

Question


My work is to develop & host websites.
Is is permissible to develop, host & maintain website for someone who may use website to cheat other people?

Person might cheat other people in following ways using the website...

1) They will advertise to earn monthly 500$ just by doing some simple data entry work that they will provide after reigstration.
2) They will charge 100$ for registration.
3) Initially they will give some money to registered users, but after sometime when enough users registered they will close the website and business.
  OR they will find errors in the data entry work done by registered users and will not pay them because of errors.

Is it permissible for me to develop this kind of data entry work website, which might be used for cheating other people?


Answer

 

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

 

It will be permissible for you to develop such a website for this person. This is because you are merely developing and hosting the website. What he does with it is up to him. You mentioned that he may use the website to cheat other people. If he does, you advise the person against it because it is morally wrong and goes against the spirit of Shariah. [1] [2] [3] [4]

 

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

 

 

Checked and Approved by,

 


[1] لو أن مسلما آجر نفسه ليعمل في الكنيسة و يعمرها لا بأس به لأنه لا معصية في عين العمل

   (فتاوى قاضي خان, ج.٣, ص.٣٣٠, دار الكتب العلمية)

 

[2]  (قَوْلُهُ وَجَازَ تَعْمِيرُ كَنِيسَةٍ) قَالَ فِي الْخَانِيَّةِ: وَلَوْ آجَرَ نَفْسَهُ لِيَعْمَلَ فِي الْكَنِيسَةِ وَيُعَمِّرَهَا لَا بَأْسَ بِهِ لِأَنَّهُ لَا مَعْصِيَةَ فِي عَيْنِ الْعَمَلِ

(ج.٦, ص.٣٩١, أيج أيم سعيد)

 

[3] قَالَ: رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ ء (وَجَازَ بَيْعُ الْعَصِيرِ مِنْ خَمَّارٍ)

البحر الرائق, ج.٨, ص.٢٣٠, دار الكتاب الإسلامي

 

[4] وَقَدْ اُسْتُفِيدَ مِنْ كَلَامِهِمْ هُنَا أَنَّ مَا قَامَتْ الْمَعْصِيَةُ بِعَيْنِهِ يُكْرَهُ بَيْعُهُ وَمَا لَا فَلَا وَلِذَا قَالَ الشَّارِحُ إنَّهُ لَا يُكْرَهُ بَيْعُ الْجَارِيَةِ الْمُغَنِّيَةِ وَالْكَبْشِ النَّطُوحِ وَالدِّيكِ الْمُقَاتِلِ وَالْحَمَامَةِ الطَّيَّارَةِ اهـ.

وَذَكَرَ الشَّارِحُ مِنْ الْحَظْرِ وَالْإِبَاحَةِ أَنَّهُ لَا يُكْرَهُ بَيْعُ جَارِيَةٍ لِمَنْ لَا يَسْتَبْرِئُهَا أَوْ يَأْتِيهَا مِنْ دُبُرِهَا أَوْ بَيْعُ غُلَامٍ مِنْ لُوطِيٍّ

البحر الرائق, ج .٥, ص.١٥٥, دار الكتاب الإسلامي

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