Posted on December 18th, 2009Domain slamming is a term used to describe a fraudulent activity executed by a third-party company, that is disguising themselves as the hosting provider of the domain. Usually the domain slammer will send an email notification to the owner of the domain. This email will seem to be a hosting service renewal notice, but in all actuality it is really an illegal way for the sender to get you to buy something from them unknowingly. These domain slammers take advantage of busy online business owners that have no clue that they are being defrauded.
Most of the time the domain owner will simply comply with the renewal notice to keep from loosing their domain name, and their online reputation that they have worked so hard for. The problem is, the company sending you the domain slam has actually included the agreement to purchase a product from them in the fine print of the virtual online contract. Therefore, even though the solicitation of the sale is highly illegal, they feel justified because you “agreed” to a contract. Domain slamming is becoming increasingly common in today’s industry, and any good web host should be fully aware of this risk.
One of the most popular ways someone is “domain slammed” is through the use of a misleading service invoice. In fact, some new hosting companies will even domain slam some people just t build their customer base and make a little bit of extra money using this method! The invoice appears to be from your regular hosting provider, however once you have agreed to the contract, you will automatically be switched to the new hosting service without notice! To avoid this make sure you are
False Domain Extensions
Another way to recognize an attempt is by checking the domain extension on the hosting renewal service. If your domain is registered is a .com domain, but the renewal invoice is for a .biz extension, then you know that this is not really your hosting provider sending you this email. If this happens to you, make sure you flag the email as spam immediately to keep them from attempting more domain slams on you in the future.
Overly Aggressive Marketing
You should also keep an eye out for emails that market new services aggressively. Even if you think the offer is quite tempting, you should remember that any company that sends spam is not a reliable or trustworthy company to deal with. If you find their offer interesting and you feel like you may want to use a similar service, then do yourself a favor and do a web search to find a more considerate company to deal with. Chances are, whatever services they are offering are also offered by other more reputable companies.
High Prices and Unusual Tactics
The fees charged by a domain slammer are generally noticeably higher than regular web hosting services. Also, beware of people sending you invoices via fax, as nearly domain host will send you information concerning your domain by email only. Following the above tips can save you a lot of trouble dealing with fraudulent companies in the future.