Nice Scam

Craig Atkins · 30th November 2004, 08:52 AM

Just got this in the mail this morning.
Seems scammy to me, although I've not clicked the link! :-)

Quote:

Dear Domain Holder,

This message is a reminder to help you keep the contact data associated with your domain registration up-to-date.

As of October 31, 2003 we are required by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to send you this reminder by the Anniversary date of each registered Domain Name that is subject to the terms and conditions of that organization.

Below is a list of domain names with your email address listed as the registrant or administrative contact. The current contact information associated with the domain may be verified by following the link provided.
If any of the contact data is inaccurate, it must be corrected. If the contact data is accurate, no further action is required to comply with this notice.

Please remember that under the terms of your registration agreement, the provision of false Whois (contact) information can be grounds for cancellation of your domain name registration.

Domain Names with Anniversary Dates between December 1 and December 31

Name: Registration Date:
------ -----------------
1-fix.com Dec 02, 2002
View Contact Data: <http://wdrp.name-services.com/whois.asp?key=1A04C9FA95D>

Thank you for your attention.

Sincerely,

WDRP Compliance

L Plates · 30th November 2004, 09:27 AM

Quote:

ICANN changes from Friday

Sounds like an scam to steal domains

gossi · 30th November 2004, 09:47 AM

Believe it or not, this may actually be legit (maybe):

http://www.icann.org/registrars/wdrp.htm

(the site in question links to that).

Although it might just be a way of collecting valid email addresses...

markanthony · 1st December 2004, 03:46 PM

Hi as you can see below this is the first part of the letter and take notice
of the highlated date.Yes its different from yours in fact do a yahoo search and you will see this letter posted in all forums and with a diffo date each time.

Dear Domain Holder,

This message is a reminder to help you keep the contact data associated with your domain registration up-to-date.

As of October 31, 2003 [/color] we are required by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to send you this reminder by the Anniversary date of each registered Domain Name that is subject to the terms and conditions of that organization.

I would class this as a clever scam

Vger · 1st December 2004, 05:20 PM

As far as I am aware ICANN only assigns blocks of ip addresses to registrars - they don't register domains themselves.

Vger

UH-Simon · 1st December 2004, 07:32 PM

ICANN is domains, Arin is IP's

clyde · 28th April 2008, 01:50 PM

Bump ........
Yes I know it's an ancient thread, but it's the only relevant one I found in this forum.
I've had a few of these emails recently - just wondering if anyone has any definitive answer as to whether they're gen or not ?
If they're genuine, why does the domain go to what appears to be a cheap holding page ? www dot name-services.com Looks like one of these cheap&nasty domain name hijackers.
I've also had a number of these Domain Registry of America scam letters recently too. Wondering if it's related ?

Vger · 28th April 2008, 02:02 PM

It's just an old scam.

You create a bogus company, get in touch with genuine site owners and try to sell them other tld's of their domain name at ridiculous prices - saying that you have another client who wants to buy them all up. They won't do this because they want to make money and not spend it.

Domain grabbing companies are different - they wait until domains expire and then grab them. 9 out of 10 times they get stuck with them, but this loss is offset by the 1 out of 10 unlucky site owners who'll pay big money to get their domain back.

Vger

p.s. and the ones which don't get bought back they may be able to sell on to porn site owners, who are willing to pay to get the traffic the genuine website used to get.

pursuit · 28th April 2008, 07:23 PM

I am not sure about .com domains but for .co.uk domains, I dont think it's possible to'grab' or whatever a domain even when it expires: Nominet wont allow anyone other than the original registrar to register it until after it expires for a long long time say 2 months (from my memory of last time I talked to them).

Vger · 28th April 2008, 11:57 PM

.uk domains can take 4-5 months to become available, and even .com domains can take 2 months to become available. But that depends on the original registrar, and some let them go after just a few days.

Vger

knapper · 29th April 2008, 08:26 AM

I had a .org.uk domain expire recently and had a letter through from nominet. Offically they give you 1 month after expiry to renew. How long it actually takes to become available on the open market again is an entirely different matter.

EasyGoing · 11th June 2008, 06:44 AM

I don't know about this...look how tricky scams are getting! people now have to really have to evaluate their online choices. Is the internet even safe anymore?

cinnamondm · 15th June 2008, 07:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pursuit

I am not sure about .com domains but for .co.uk domains, I dont think it's possible to'grab' or whatever a domain even when it expires: Nominet wont allow anyone other than the original registrar to register it until after it expires for a long long time say 2 months (from my memory of last time I talked to them).

.co.uk require a form to be filled in by both the existing and new owners to change the owner name - a company I work for 'helpfully' registered a domain for me in their own name (silly idea, but was convenient to do at the time) and although I have now transferred it to my own registrar and changed address etc, I cannot change owner name. It's not a crucial domain though, so I've decided to let it expire and re-register it myself later.

But back to the original point of the thread - whether or not you are suspicious of the email, it's good advice with anything of this type to not click the link, just log in at where you know the domain or account is registered and make any necessary changes there.

@EasyGoing - the Internet is unsafe if you let it be. Don't trust everything - same way as you wouldn't trust a stranger in the street who randomly stopped you to 'sign here to change your bank details'