SNAPNAMES.COM IS AGAIN SCAMMING DOMAIN CUSTOMERS. STAY AWAY FROM SNAPNAMES

I just read an article of interest todo with domain name auction and scam read it below. I copied and pasted here since it would not allow me to post the link to the original article. Read It Below!:

In 2009 SnapNames a major domain name seller and broker was successfully sued for cheating customers using the shill bidding scam. "Shill bidding" is when Snapnames.com themselves, create fake accounts and pretend to be prospective buyers interested in the domain name you are interested in, that is being auctioned by SnapNames themselves.

It is 2/July/2014, 5 Years later and SnapNames.com is right back at it!!!! But this time, none USA citizens are the primary targeted victims. This is how the Scam works. SnapNames.com deliberately holds back important and time sensitive Information as well as uses Intentionally frustrating and out dated credit Card verification process that ends up forcing customers from NONE USA countries to fail credit card verification process such that they have no alternative but to send manual copies of their ID's and Credit Cards to SnapNames.com. Snap Names by passes secured encrypted electronic data transmission and verification process for manual verification so as to intentionally have access your credit card info and accompanying ID. This details are the ones used by snap names for Shill auctions, by either unscrupulous SnapNames employees or even the company itself. Secure electronic verification methods like 'verified by VISA', 'secured my Master Card Code' etc are deliberately avoided in favor of insecure manual methods.

It all starts like this! When a prospective domain name bidder, opens up a new account at snapnames.com, They are asked to verify certain information for fraud prevention. Snapnames.com sends a temporary billing amount of less that $1.00 USD that will be billed to your credit card by a pinging method.

If you are a NON USA citizen, chances are that your credit card will NOT have been issued by a USA financial institution hence it may not be a USA dollar Credit Card. The temp verification amount billed to your credit card will be converted into the currency native to your Country issuing your credit card. For Instance if you are from Germany, your Credit Card Temporary billing amount will be displayed on your credit card statement in Duetche marks and NOT in USA dollars unless your credit card is a USD Credit Card.

So having a credit card from Germany, your credit card statements will be in Duetche Marks and you will have to send to Snap Names the temp billed amount in Duetche marks. But SnapNames knowing fully well that your Country of Origin is NOT USA, and that the amount you are sending to them is in Duetche Mark, they will still insist that you report back to them that temp bill amount in USA dollars.

This is deliberately being bone headed by Snap Names. Many Companies of SnapNames size have adopted the use of Multi currency billing to avoid this specific problem. Naturally to get the original USA temp amount, will require that you call your credit card company to get these amounts. But since these temp billing amounts are not real transactions, depending on many factors such as whether your credit card is being issued from an international credit card company, the exchange rates, the merchant processing agreement fee between your native country and credit card issuer, the gateway processor etc your credit card statement amounts may not be shown as exactly as pinged by Snapnames. (Some Credit Cards will display the USA amount as well as the exchange rate and final amount in native currency)

Here is the Process!
1 - On signing up with snap names and entering your credit card information you will get a welcome message from Snap Names. This Initial Email message from Snap Names will only contain a welcome message with notification of your username. This Initial email message like many other domain selling companies should tell you that the temp billed amount to your credit should be verified and reported to Snapnames within 12 hours of your signing up for an account, or your account will be automatically suspended. (They dont tell you this).

2 - Within 12 to 24 Hrs, if you have not yet sent in the temp bill amount, you will then receive another automatically generated email message from Snap Names support team (From some an ambiguous IP address) telling you that your account has been suspended and that you must send to snap names the temp bill amount in-order to activate your account. Now this message too, like the first one is deliberately lacking in information. It does not tell you how to send the bill amount information to snap names whether by Email, Camera, Telephone, Fax, or login to your account (Other Companies will ask you to login to your account and enter the temp bill amount in a box provided, or click on a link to enter temp bill amount)

This email message also does not tell you that the Temp Billed amount will expire within 12 to 48 hrs and will no longer be displayed on your credit card statement. Off-course expiry duration is dependent on your credit card type, time zone difference, weekday or weekend etc, etc.

3 - So if you do not have a scanner, fax, photocopier or camera around to send copies of your ID and Credit card, or if you think it is too much of a bother, or you will simply not send copies of their Credit Card and ID's to unknown customer service representatives outside your country of Origin, your snap Names account remains suspended to you but still open to SnapNames for Shill Billing.

4 - Snap Names Knows fully well that most people do not read terms of agreements. Hence you may find some of the deliberately left out information, scattered some where in Snap Names long windy Terms of Agreements. Snap Names will first direct you to their FAQ page. You will notice that important information will be missing here. They also know that people will assume that since postings on forums etc have listed Companies like Snap Names along side NameJet and Pool.com, that Snap Names is on the Up and Up.
It is why they deliberately will not put upfront in a clear and concise manner time limit and important sign up procedures. Infact most customers will find out about all these limitations when it is too late, they would have already signed up to snap names with their names and credit cards. Kind of find out more as you go.

If you happen to win an auction and payed that exorbitant fee, depending on how much you payed and how choice your domain name was, you may even be amazed to find out that your domain name registrar is not even snapnames.com It may be some little unknown domain registrar company that you have never heard of. Being that it will take you at least 60 days before you can transfer your domain name to a registrar of your choice, you may find that this unknown domain registrar may have a limited domain name control panel and you maybe forced to host or park your domain with this registrar unable to transfer it until such time. Also Sometimes the Domain Name will continue to have the name of the registrar and not your name. It will take a number of emails and phone calls to rectify this situation if ever you even succeed. That is because Snap Names also owns numerous domain registry websites with various names, recently aquired ones and recently created ones that they have not seamlessly been able to merge domain name registration processes.

The Use of Manual ID and Credit Card copies as a means of verification opens a whole Pandora box of credid card fraud, ID theft, Domain Name theft etc. People with the know how can use, image altering software like Adobe Photoshop, Corel draw etc to alter copies of documents sent to Snap Names. It appears that this is exactly what Snap Names wants. It gives them a loop hole to scape-goat any fraudulent transactions on their part.

You may also be surprised to know that domain companies like moniker.com, DotDM, web.com, Names Wanted.com etc are affiliated/owned, sister companies to SnapNames.com

Snap names has in its power the ability to stream line their domain name registration and Backorder procedure. Instead they deliberately and knowingly use methods that expose customers to fraud and insecure practices. Practices that are archaic and outdated. It is the same procedures that they have been using since 2009. Not much has changed, they have still failed to curb shill bidding.

If you have a Domain Name of High Demand and worth lots of Money, I would stay far far away from SnapNames.com If I can. BUt I think on cheap NOT imporatant domain names Snap Names will be honest.

 

I had no trouble with them but granted I only ever bought 1 or 2 names there of the hundreds I have owned.

I also found out some of the domains that snapnames lists (especially for $59) you can just go register for $8 at Godaddy or where ever your registrar of choice is if you time it right. Snap names is just trying to broker dropped domains.