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Domain Name Renewal RipOff

  1. bunkstrutts
    Member

    ATTENTION WORDPRESS BLOGGERS: RIPOFF ALERT: As my website is approaching its domain name renewal date, I received a notice via snailmail from a company called "LibertyNames of America" of Niagra Falls NY. They offered to renew my domain name for $29.00 for a year's registration. WordPress offers the same renewal for $15.00 via email notice with link to PayPal. Sump'm just don't feel right. If you've received a similar message, let WordPress know.

    What disturbs me more is that a third party apparently was able to connect my website with my home address in order to send the "invoice." WordPress security has been breached.

  2. raincoaster
    Member

    WordPress security as you perceive it does not exist. You gave Whois the correct information; that was never confidential.

  3. raincoaster
    Member

    See, that's not info that WordPress controls: that is info that the heap big Domain Registration Mucky-Mucks control, and it is not generally kept confidential. There IS a way around it if I recall correctly, but it requires you to use that workaround from the very beginning. This is one reason people register corporations and give the corporate address, or PO boxes.

  4. airazor
    Member

    I believe you pay a fee ontop of the domain fee to keep your information cofidential (where applicable).

  5. raincoaster
    Member

    You wouldn't pay that to WordPress, though. The information at Whois has nothing to do with them, it's just that giving name and address is a condition of having a domain name.

    The Libertynames spammer probably just goes through ALL the names and addresses that are coming up for renewal and emails them automatically.

  6. tellyworth
    Staff

    These are common scams unfortunately, the domain registration equivalent to those phone service "slamming" scams. Whois information is required to be public and accurate. There was no security breach here -- they were using public information.

    We don't offer a private registration feature yet, I believe there are limitations to the domain reseller api that make that difficult, but I'll note this as another request for that feature.

  7. bunkstrutts
    Member

    I was unaware that this is a common scam. Thanks for the clarifications.

  8. blaxter
    Member

    When I registered my domain name with 123-reg I was told that individuals can stay anon but that companies have no option. I chose to be public though.

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