Is Domain Name Services a scam?
You may have received a letter from Domain Name Services that looks much like an invoice and wondered if its legitimate or if Domain Name Service is a scam. The letter contains the heading “Domain Name Expiration Notice” in bold letters and contains details including the domain name in question and the expiration date. It also includes a dollar amount “due” and a payment remittance slip.
For all intents and purposes, this is designed to look like an invoice.
So Domain Name Services Is a scam, right?
It’s not a scam, but it is very deceptive advertising.
Buried in the second paragraph of the letter it states that “Domain name holders are not obligated to review their domain name with the current Registrar or with Domain Name Services” which is true. It also adds “You are under no obligation to pay the amounts stated below, unless you accept this offer. This is not a bill.”
If it’s not an invoice, why did I receive this?
Your domain is legitimately expiring in the next few months, and Domain Name Services is trying to take advantage of this expiration date to get you to switch to their registrar services. By sending you something that looks like an invoice with specific details they’re trying to make it look like you need to pay them to retain rights to your domain name, even though they disclaim in a few places that it’s not a bill and you’re not under any obligation to pay it. Basically, Domain Name Services is trying to poach customers from other registrars. It’s shady and deceptive, but not illegal and not a scam.
Domain Name Services is hoping that you don’t realize it’s not an invoice and go ahead and pay it without fully understanding the circumstances.
“If they do not know how to properly read or digest information, unfortunately that is not a problem we can help them rectify.”
Deceiving customers and then insulting them for being deceived is a bold move.
If Domain Name Services was your registrar, you’d probably receive a very different looking invoice. We’ve managed over a thousand domain names at Glimmernet and not a single domain has been registered with Domain Name Services.
In fact, the only time we hear about Domain Name Services is when we receive this same solicitation, or customers send us this letter from Domain Name Services asking if it’s a scam.
Frequently Asked Questions about Domain Name Services Scams
The letter says I “can take advantage of [their] best savings.” Is this offer from Domain Name Services a good deal?
Hardly. $265 for a 5-year registration is $53 per year, which is well above market prices.
How did Domain Name Services get my mailing address if I’m not their customer?
The registrant’s information including mailing addresses, phone number, and email address is public unless the registrant also pays an additional fee for a private registation.
What should I do with this letter from Domain Name Services?
Shred it.
What would happen if I paid Domain Name Services?
Presumably Domain Name Services would try to transfer the domain to them, but this isn’t an automatic process and they cannot do it without the registrants involvement. You would need to unlock the domain at your current registrar and then provide the transfer code to Domain Name Services to start the transfer process. If you don’t complete both steps the domain cannot be transferred, and you’d have to keep paying your original registrar as well to keep the domain active.
The challenge might be trying to get a refund from Domain Name Services. Typically, domain name registrations are non-refundable, but, to their credit, Domain Name Services has offered refunds as part of their dispute resolutions on the BBB site.
Are there complaints against Domain Name Services for being scammy?
Absolutely. As of today (10/21/2024) Domain Name Services has an F rating at the Better Business Bureau with an alert that indicates “BBB has received multiple reports from consumers that Internet Domain Name Services (IDNS) is engaged in a fake invoice scheme, attempting to bill businesses for the renewal of their domain name registration.” You can read all of the complaints at https://www.bbb.org/us/nj/jersey-city/profile/web-hosting/internet-domain-name-services-idns-0221-90170042/complaints
Why are they allowed to continue operating?
Because what they’re doing isn’t illegal.
Will they ever change their tactics and be more straightforward in their sales approach?
Doesn’t look good.
Wait, isn’t Domain Name Services a critical component of the internet?
No, that’s Domain Name System – commonly known as DNS. DNS is what turns domain names such as glimmernet.com into IP addresses such as 192.168.1.1 which correspond to the servers that host your website, email, etc.
We assume they chose the name Domain Name Services to sound like Domain Name System to add to the confusion and make their request seem more legitimate.
I got a letter or invoice from someone other than Domain Name Services. How do I know if it’s legitimate or a scam?
Send it to us and we’d be happy to take a look. We’ll cross-reference your domain registration information with the letter you received to see if it’s legitimate or a scam. Usually this only takes a few minutes.
Whatever you do, don’t pay invoices you don’t recognize!
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