At 3/23/02 12:16 PM, Mike Allen wrote:

>I would be more than happy to send it to you, but if you "Technically" look
>at it, it's not a scam unless you feel that credit card transfer offer and
>such are scams too?

I strongly disagree -- unless it's different from the "Domain Registry of 
America" letters I've seen, it does not use the word "transfer" at all. 
Instead, it repeatedly talks about "renewing" your domain name with them.

Here's a sample letter of the kind I've seen:

  http://blackcat2.virtualave.net/DRO.gif

The word "renew" strongly implies "continue existing service without 
making changes". Their use of "renew" without making it clear that doing 
so cancels service with your existing company is blatantly misleading and 
dishonest. I've had at least two customers taken in by it (they assumed 
the letter was from us because it talked about "renewing" the domain) and 
at least five who called or wrote to find out if paying that "Important 
Notice" would renew the domain with us.

This is absolutely a scam, and it's entirely unlike credit card transfer 
offers where it's clear to the consumer that he or she will be opening a 
new credit card account with a different company. If one of my clients 
wants to renew with DROA and understands that doing so cancels his or her 
relationship with my company, that's fine. But that's not what's 
happening -- people are accidentally paying DROA because the "notice" is 
worded in such a way that it looks like it might be a bill from us if you 
don't look at it closely.

--
Robert L Mathews, Tiger Technologies

"The trouble with doing something right the first time is that nobody
appreciates how difficult it was."

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