Aftershock Blog
Domain Scams To Watch Out For...
30/6/2010
We've had several calls or emails the past few weeks in relation to queries about domain name letters or emails received by clients from various places.
To be clear, if your domain is managed by us, the only valid invoice you'll receive is from us.
The rest are scams, or playing on people's (understandable) lack of knowledge in this area.
Let's highlight 2 scams.
1. The Chinese Email Domain Scam
Some have received an email to this effect (note: names have been changed):
Dear CEO,
We are the domain name registration organization in Asia, which mainly deal with international company's in Asia. We have something important need to confirm with your company.
On the Jan 3, 2008, we received an application formally. One company named " HongTeng International Holdings Ltd" wanted to register following
Domain names:
companyname.cc
companyname.com.hk
companyname.com.tw
companyname.hk
companyname.mobi
companyname.net.cn
companyname.org.cn
companyname.tw
Internet brand keyword:
companyname
through our body.
After our initial examination, we found that the keywords and domain names applied for registration are as same as your company's name and trademark. These days we are dealing with it. If you do not know this company, we doubt that they have other aims to buy these domain names. Now we have not finished the registration of HongTeng company yet, in order to deal with this issue better, Please contact us by telephone or email as soon as possible.
Best Regards,
Name Withheld
This is a clear case of building a need where there isn't one. They want you to think, boy they're my company's domains I might need them in future (you're never going to do anything in China, but stil...), I better grab them before this other company get's them.
Now they actually will register the domains for you if you wish, so what's the scam?
To register all of those domains will cost you in the region of $1,400 per year.
The true cost? About $500... And remember no one likely has any interest at all in those domains.
2. Domain "Renewal" Letter
A more Aussie based scam that still hasn't fully been eradicated comes in the form of a letter to you looking official (and very much in the Style of Melbourne IT's design).
It's a letter/invoice asking you to pay $220 for your domain name for the coming year.
Now like the Chinese Email Domain Scam above they will register it for you if you pay, so what's the scam?
Take a closer look at the domain name...
It isn't your domain at all.
For example if your domain is: www.mycompany.com.au they have instead put www.mycompany.net.au and it's easy to gloss over.
Do you really need a .net.au name? Probably not, but maybe...
What's the cost?
Definitely NOT $220 for a year, these domains we register for only $90 for TWO years...
The company sending these out has received warnings and action from the ACCC, although they still somehow keep getting around it.
No doubt this coming year will reveal yet more scams, but always feel more than free and welcome to contact us if you have any queries at all.