Domain name scams

There are various domain name scams doing the rounds, below is information on the different ways they can occur and how to avoid them.
Generally, domain scams are tricks to get you to part with money, your domain, or even both. They will:

• Get you to pay over the odds for domain names you probably don't need.
• Trick you into disclosing login details for your domain name control panel.

At the very least, they are a pain, but can be much more detrimental if you rely on your website for business.
Losing control of your domain name and having to change your site's address could cost time, money and lose you business. It's worth learning how to spot the scams so here are the most common.

The urgent letter in the post
This scam uses an official-looking letter to coerce you into transferring your domain to a different registration company.

• How it works?
  You get a letter through the mail (the post may make it seem more official) telling you that your domain name is due to expire. These letters usually have titles like 'Domain name expiration notice’, and push you to renew your domain.

The notice creates a sense of urgency, often with a  warning that 'failure to renew your domain name by the expiration date will result in a loss of your online identity’. However, if you reply, you would not only be renewing your domain - you’d also be transferring it away from your current registrar.

• How do I avoid it?
  Make sure you know how your existing registration company contacts you. For instance, at Net Business, we don’t send out letters - so you can be sure that a notice like this didn’t come from us.

You should also familiarise yourself with the process your registration company handles renewals. So if you receive a communication instructing you to renew in a different way then it’s almost certainly some sort of trick.

 The pressurised cold call
With this you’ll get the hard-sell down the phone.

• How it works?
  The scammers get hold of your phone number (usually from your business’s website or another publicly-available source , like the phone book or similar). They call you up and their pitch is normally along these lines:

"Hello, I’m calling from such-and-such company. A client of ours has asked us to register [insert some very similar domain names to yours] on their behalf. I have them on the other line and they are all ready to pay, but I needed to do a check to make sure they’re allowed to register them. If you want to register them instead, I can put that through for you now - it will cost [insert extortionate amount]."

• How do I avoid it?
  This sort of scam tends to increase when new domain extensions (such as .asia   or .eu) are released. The best thing to do is to politely decline (or slam the phone down!). Their 'client’ is just a ploy to put you under pressure to act.

Again, find out if your registration company would ever contact you in this way, contact your registration company direct (don’t use a number given to you by the company / person on the other end of the phone as this could be part of the scam too). At Net Business chances are you would probably know the person calling you and we would never do a pressurised hard-sell in this way.

Email Scams

There are two main types of email you need to be on the look out for:

• The "someone else is trying to register your brand name" email

Many of these emails are sent by unscrupulous registration companies. The message will say that someone is trying to register domain names which contain your brand name or trademark.
The message might ask whether you want to register the domain names yourself, but often the scam is more subtle. The email will just ask you to reply if the domains listed contain your brand name.
Once you reply, you’ll be bombarded with sales emails or calls, pressurising you to buy these domains at inflated prices. Their pitch will have a real sense of urgency and you’ll be told that if you don’t act fast, the (fictitious) company interested in the domains will buy them instead
If you do go ahead and buy from the scammers, it won’t end there. They’ll try to lock you into restrictive terms and make it virtually impossible to transfer the domains away from them.

• The "please update your details" email

These messages are a form of phishing. They’re a malicious and underhand way to gain control of your domain name(s) by posing as a legitimate company.
How it works.
You receive an email which appears to have been sent by a domain name registration company. The design looks genuine, but actually it’s a fake.
It says you need to “verify” or “update” your details for some reason, and provides a link for you to do just that. It also creates a sense of urgency by imposing a deadline, perhaps giving you seven days before your domain is cancelled.
When you click the link, you get taken to a website. Again, although this might look like it’s genuine, it isn’t.
You’ll be asked to input some details - typically, your username and password. If you enter them, they get sent to the scammers, who can then log in to your account and transfer your domain names away.
These attempts vary from being completely laughable to surprisingly good so don’t get complacent and expect to spot all of them easily.

• How do to avoid these email scams?
  

The most important thing to remember here is never believe anything anyone says by email before checking out the full facts first. If something does not seem right it tends to mean its not. If you’re in any doubt about the origin of an email, don’t click any links and don’t enter any information. If you’re not sure if a particular email was sent by your registration company then contact them to check.

Other ways to help spot scams

• Often emails start with “Dear User” or something similar which is non-specific, this would suggest they have no idea who you are and that you are just part of a bulk email or letter scam. Most companies that you do deal with would at very least use your contact name.
• Remember bulk scams have one set email for everyone they target so they are always general, usually they will not mention your specific domain name or contact details.
• There’s also a decent chance in scam emails that spelling & grammar may be bad.
• Search Google. If you’re being scammed, chances are that someone, has run into the same trick before. Copy a phrase from the email you’ve received and paste it into Google. With luck, you’ll find a blog or forum post from someone who can confirm it’s an attempted scam.

Other Helpful Information

• All domain names registered with Net Business are kept locked so they can’t be transferred unless the client requests it. So no third party can transfer your domain name (if you respond to a third party they will most likely just take your money and not do anything about registering the domain).
• If  in any doubt get in touch with Net Business (or your registration company).
• Many scams are easily spotted and best ignored. As long as you know which company your domain names are registered with and when they’re due to expire, you can usually safely ignore dodgy messages urging you to “verify your account details”.

Other ways to combat the scammers
There are a couple of other things you can do to make it difficult for the domain name cheats out there.

• Hide your details. With some domains, (like .co.uk), you can opt to remove your personal details from the WHOIS database. Take advantage of this. If the scammers can’t see your details, they can’t contact you.
• Keep your domain locked. A locked domain can’t be transferred. As mentioned above all Net Business domain names are locked by default.
• Check when your domain is actually due to expire, and be wary of any communications that aren’t from the company you registered it with. A quick search on Google can often confirm your suspicions - and you can always get in touch with your registration company directly.
• Finally: use your commonsense. If you think a letter, email or telephone call might not be what it appears, then don’t take any action.