ICANN Moves Against GoDaddy Domain Lockdowns 146
An anonymous reader writes "ICANN is finally taking action against Domain Registrar GoDaddy's controversial 'lockdowns'. GoDaddy has long had a policy of 'locking down' domain names for 60 days after a customer updated their contact details. This put customers in a Catch 22 position: ICANN requires customers keep their contact details up to date, or risk having the domain forfeited. Yet during the lockdown period the customer is prevented from transferring the domain from GoDaddy to another registrar. If the lockdown ran over the domain's expiry date, customers were forced to renew with GoDaddy or lose the domain. ICANN proposes to ban this practice. ICANN who is charged with overseeing the Internet has long been accused of giving domain registrars a free ride. But recently after ICANN failed to discipline Network Solutions over a front-running scam, they found themselves both on the wrong end of a lawsuit by lawyers Kabateck Brown Kellner. Is ICANN's action a signal of increased vigilance in policing registrars, or is it a PR move paving the way for a complete removal of US Government oversight?"
I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or NS (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:3, Funny)
Yarr Yarr
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:5, Informative)
Re: (Score:1, Informative)
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:4, Informative)
We only found this out when we wanted to consolidate all our domains with 1&1. (Of course, I found that our 10-year old domain had the contact info from our old ISP!)
Because of the transfer screwup, we kept it status quo with one name on NS and the others on 1&1. It was such a hassle with 1&1 that I am thinking seriously about consolidation again, only to Netsol instead! (and that is saying much!)
I'd like to see reforms at ICANN, so I don't have to worry about being screwed when some registrar is bought out by someone or when some different set of suits is put in management.
P.S. Direcnic is not the cheapest, but I use them personally and I have no reason to switch. Besides, considering their location, they have disaster preparedness down pat.
Re: (Score:2)
I'm soured on 1&1 too.
The Better Business Bureau seems to agree with your opinion and other repliers who have had bad experiences with 1 And 1 Internet, Inc. From the BBB's reliability report on 1 & 1 Internet [bbb.org]:
Based on BBB files, this company has an unsatisfactory record with the Bureau due to unanswered complaint(s).
Customer Complaint Data
Number of complaints processed by the BBB over the last 36 months: 510
Number of complaints processed by the BBB in the last 12 months: 256
The report tha
Re: (Score:1, Informative)
I was out a domain name for two weeks, and received no compensation.
Oh, and if you only do domain registration through them, you're limited to 5 subdomains per account, not per domain.
That means if you have 100 domain names, you can only have 5 glue domains.
I use MyDomain.com; seems ok. Anyone else? (Score:2)
Slightly offtopic: the abo
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
About three years ago I started hosting podcasts. I didn't see a problem because when I'd set up the account (perhaps two three years before that) there was a bandwidth cap of 5GB a month. However 1&1 removed the cap without altering their terms and conditions with me. Suddenly I had a £400 bill posted to me, which obviously was slightly worrying.
Despite dozens of phone calls with service representatives (which seem to only consis
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: (Score:1)
GoDaddy is like $10 a year, which I think is plenty cheap, so while I don't like their tactics, I don't think their pricing is exorbitant, and their online tools are pretty nice.
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:4, Insightful)
In this case, GoDaddy's lockdown policies are probably worth the trouble they cause. On the down side, you need to cough up an extra $10/domain if you happen to change your info, AND want to move registrars, AND wait until there are less than 60 days on your contract. On the up side, if your account gets compromised, you have 60 days to notice and fix things before it will cost you thousands of dollars in legal fees to maybe get your domains back.
GoDaddy is slimy, and they will take the spammers dollars as readily as they'll take anyone else's, but that doesn't mean they are pure evil incarnate. If you ever do have a domain you care about compromised, you'll be very, very happy with their lockdown policies.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I had no shell access, and he "fixed" the problem for me. A year later I did some other updates (forgetting that one component could not be updated). When I contacted tech support, they told me
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
For the few customers we've taken over with domain issues, this wasn't acceptable by any means...
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:4, Insightful)
I can't comment on this since I've never needed to make a support query.
However, I have always found that running your own name servers, rather than relying on the registrar's (or anyone else's) does make life a lot easier - you can make changes to your domain immediately instead of waiting around for someone else to do it, you have more chance of the changes being correct (the number of times someone has screwed up when copying and pasting from a change request email is mind-boggling) and you get to do stuff that commercial name servers usually won't let you do (set very low TTLs when shuffling servers around, set up records that aren't just the usual A and MX records, etc).
The less third parties you have to trust to run services for you, the better off you are.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
~S
Re: (Score:1, Informative)
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:1)
I buy all my domains and hosting there. Not the cheapest, but GREAT service.
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:2)
The company has been around for a while, the prices are reasonable, the control panels sane, and the support very quick to respond. I've even donated money to them in the past (I was a longtime free ddns user before using paid services).
Re: (Score:1)
You should definitely check it out.
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:5, Informative)
http://nodaddy.com/#alternatives [nodaddy.com]
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:1, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:1)
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:2)
Highly recommended, obviously.
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:2)
I was already using No-IP for dynamic DNS and found that their management tools are simple and their website is uncluttered (they don't spam every page with ads for the zillions of services like GoDaddy and some of the other big registrars).
easydns.org (Score:2)
Re:I'd rather not buy from the likes of GoDaddy or (Score:2)
I have had very bad experiences with... (Score:2)
I too want to find a good domain nam
NameCheap.com caused MAJOR problems for me. (Score:2)
The don't answer trouble tickets except with irrelevant replies. It is possible to call them and leave a message, but they have NEVER called me back.
MAJOR, major hassles.
Just a matter of proper ordering... (Score:2, Insightful)
So transfer it and then update your info. Although registrars shouldn't get away with this crap, I fail to see how this amounts to more than a minor nuissance.
Even in the worst-case scenario (changing your info a few weeks before expiration, before realizing you want to transfer), a domain's owner only "loses" a couple bucks at most for using GoDaddy for one more year. Not a big deal, IMO, even if I do fully encourage the spanking of GoDad
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Funny thing was, I had to check a box that said I agreed that the person I was transferring it to was obligated to accept the 60 day lockdown after the transfer.
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Just a matter of proper ordering... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
Re: (Score:2)
The problem is, many registrars have all sorts of crap associated with them. For many people, it looks like little more than a question of who do you want to be screwed by.
is there any decent non "evil"registrar out there? (Score:2, Informative)
can anyone please point to a decent non "evil" registrar
Goddady = bad (see this article)
Enom = bad ( see http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/03/09/025222 [slashdot.org] )
Network solutions ( see http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/03/23/1914238 [slashdot.org] and http://slashdot.org/article.pl?no_d2=1&sid=00/05/12/2141250 [slashdot.org] and http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/02/15/2121200 [slashdot.org]
Anyone?
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
GratisDNS.dk (Score:2, Informative)
It is free to move your domain to and use their DNS servers, and you get full control of the DNS records.
If you want to register a new domain, the prices are very fair.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
Re:is there any decent non "evil"registrar out the (Score:5, Funny)
I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with that alignment. Is that like "True Neutral", or does it lean towards "Lawful" or "Chaotic" ends?
Re: (Score:2)
Better than most companies, which tend towards chaotic evil.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Another vote for you to check out dreamhost.com.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Granted, I don't own hundreds of domains, so price isn't a major issue. If it were,
Re: (Score:2)
I personally use moniker
Nodaddy List Qualification (Score:2)
Note that the nodaddy.com site hasn't done a lot of research on the registrars they listed and they warn you about that. It is JUST a list of registrars they have heard good things about.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
One can always hope that people will notice that it is an unresearched list IF a comment is made about it.
Re:is there any decent non "evil"registrar out the (Score:2)
I've never read or heard about them doing anything overtly evil (unlike NS or GoDaddy).
Re: (Score:2)
ICANN (Score:2)
I thought they were responsible for assigning IP blocks and deciding that ".museum" was a good idea. When did that become "overseeing the internet"?
Re:ICANN (Score:4, Informative)
Re:ICANN (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
And DNS. Please, please don't forget DNS.
"Overseeing the internet" is a good description. A very good one in fact. ICANN, despite its problems, keeps the system from splintering into separate, nation block controlled areas.
It's also a good description in another sense. When they eventually do get down to censoring the web (for the children), ICANN will be the or
GoDaddy and the spam you received today (Score:5, Interesting)
This really isn't surprising, though: spammers and phishers buy domains by the hundreds, if not thousands, which makes them excellent customers. And if you're GoDaddy, you need that income (among other reasons) to fund your offensively sexist commercials.
How does this tie in? It's all about profits. Profits for GoDaddy are maximized by selling as many domains as possible and then holding them for ransom. Given how weak and slow ICANN has been, this has been a viable strategy for a number of years; it remains to be seen if something meaningful will actually happen in this case, or whether GoDaddy will just continue cementing its reputation as one of the scummiest registrars out there.
Re: (Score:2)
Even if they
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
they talk about "product development" and similar
They do not run any Root Nameservers, they do not police the system, they are selling registrations, and nothing else
Am I missing something? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
Beats me 'brand name' ? A european registrar is safer in regard to things european's can do, and american's cannot. The opportunity to holiday in Cuba is one recent example where some european got there domains taken out by the us govt recently.
My eu registar has a rule that a domain cannot be transfered in the first month after purchase which im cool with and has none of the restrictions Comrade Parsons of godaddy has that im aware of.
GoDaddy not the only one (Score:4, Interesting)
GoDaddy has long had a policy of 'locking down' domain names for 60 days after a customer updated their contact details
I ran into this exact same situation a few weeks ago with either Network Solutions or Register.com (we were bouncing back and forth between the two services working on a few different accounts, so my memory is faulty as to which one was the culprit - though I'm leaning towards NetSol). My point is that the issue is not isolated to just GoDaddy.
We wanted to transfer the account to a different registrar, but the email address on file was one that was no longer active. So we changed the address to one that was active so the transfer messages could arrive correctly, and we were told that there was a hold. Solution: I called and bitched about it. Took about 24 hours, but we were able to bypass the auto lock and move the account successfully. Not the most ideal situation, but at least there was a way around.
Re:GoDaddy not the only one (Score:5, Interesting)
If you tell NS that you are trying/going to move the domain due to their (exorbitant) pricing, they will offer you a new price, much more in line with what other registrars like GoDaddy charge ($8.75/yr in my case). So basically, problem solved...
I do think the lock-down policy is a simple ploy to retain customers, no matter who implements it.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
I am a geek/nerd/technologist, but I'd wager that a much, much larger portion of their client base isn't, and so that much larger percentage just goes ahead and pays whatever bill they get in regards to domain costs. A surprising number of people who come to me for web work are still paying NS $35 a year, with no clue that that is a very high price. So, if for some reason they ever find themselves in this situation, they still pay, forgetting the policy and the possibi
Re: (Score:2)
I just bought a couple domains through GoDaddy (as I'm migrating from my old host, which charges $15/yr/domain among other stupidities) and I'm reasonably satisfied. The idea that they'd charge me to move my existing domains to them is stupid, but I'm sure I c
Re: (Score:2)
Not just GoDaddy (Score:3, Informative)
It took two or three encounters with their support staff and the threat of a complaint to ICANN to get the lock removed so I could continue with the transfer.
Domain Futures (Score:2)
What can we do about it?
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Well that about does it (Score:2, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
hmm. (Score:2)
I also advocate a list of "bad" ISPs so we can **avoid** them. Name and shame I say, the nets good for that.
Its amazing how many business practices seem to be accepted or tolerated on the net that would be frowned upon or a cue for legal action in the real world. its as though virtual assets somehow seem less valuable then real ones, which is obviously not always true.
Not everyone hates GoDaddy (Score:1, Interesting)
Phone Numbers (Score:2)
As for Godaddy being "evil", I've used them for years, had no trouble tranferring domains in or out, speak to live humans when I need to, and get phone calls from them when domains are expiring or when they have a deal that would actually lower what I pa
It took *this* long for a *positive* comment??! (Score:2)
I've never had a problem with GoDaddy, nor have I *ever* received a complaint. On the contrary, several of those whom I've referred have *compliments* about their service and pricing.
In abo
Re: (Score:2)
I haven't moved in years. I live in a house that was my grandparents' and was paid off a long time ago. I have no plans to move now that I've been dumped and am no longer looking for a job to relocate closer to my now-ex boyfriend. I know how to update contact information should I ever move, however.
And yet they won't stop pestering me from time to time. If they, one more time, send me a "Records in
Re: (Score:2)
However, it was about that time I synchronized the domain renewal dates of all my domains... I dunno. Maybe that may help? There may be some sort of opt-out option hidden deep within their extensive config pages. Good luck!
On a similar vein (OT, but amusing) I just got an email from Lenov
NoDaddy (Score:1)
No no no! (Score:5, Insightful)
Hackers can break in to your account. It can happen even when you're being careful. A lockdown means that you have time to track down a real human being and get it reversed before the domain is transferred to some registrar in China whose support reps don't even speak English.
ICANN needs new leadership (Score:1)
What about foriegn companies who register using GoDaddy, outside the reach of the US? Furthermore, what if the foreign company did no business in the US nor was subject to US taxation? We are back to regulation without representation. I do not see what GoDaddy is doing wrong.
I have said before ICANN needs to be turned over to an international body or maybe a consortiu
For all that ICANN has done... (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
Re: (Score:2)
It's just the cost of doing business, and even at 200 is not that much of a cost in the scheme of things. I have much bigger fish to fry over trying to save a few pennies on a domain name or two.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
I guess some people need something to complain about!
I don't care to give money to assholes, personally, whether its $10 or $1000. Also, some people own multiple domains (I own about 10 personally), so it could potentially be more than $10.
GoDaddy's been making stupid asshole m
Re: (Score:2)
Are their cheaper services? Probably, I'm sure. Are there less annoying ones? You bet. But Godaddy is a known evil, and their high-pressure upsale efforts just plain suck. But you know what? I've been with them for years, and I can b
Re:serious idea steganographically hidden in a lol (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)