This is a chronological record of the communications that took place when our crel.com domain was stolen from us.
The first conversation took place after crel.com was put on hold by Network Solutions (NSI) without notification for non-payment.
If you have not already done so, please first read the story about what happened. Then this information will be more meaningful.
Mon 2/7/00
I called NSI and they said it was put on hold for non-payment. I explained that I never received an invoice through email or snail mail. I verified that they had the correct address for both and they did. I asked how to go about just transferring our domain from them to another registrar.
I Spoke with Al and Steve (a manager) at Network Solutions and they said they own the domain until it is paid and they would not release it for transfer to another registrar until I paid $35 for another year. Al said they have a form for me to fill out to transfer it once I have payed for another year but he has to email it to me (I later found out, of course, that this was mis-information. A transfer is initiated from the new registrar). I asked him if I can get it from their web site and he said no. I asked why and he said "business". I said that was un-ethical to make me pay for another year for a service they were not going to provide just let me transfer the domain to another service. He said there was no law saying they have to release it (As you can see, ethics have nothing to do with it).
Al said that an invoice had been mailed to me through snail mail as well as emailed to me before the payment was due. I received neither. The last email I got from internic was
From: rereg@internic.net To: postmaster@crel.com Subject: [NIC-990919.c09] Modify Registration CREL.COM Date: Sun, 19 Sep 1999 06:54:11 -0400 (EDT) THIS IS NOT AN INVOICE, PLEASE DO NOT PAY UPON RECEIPT OF THIS NOTICE. YOUR BILLING CONTACT WILL RECEIVE AN INVOICE APPROXIMATELY 30 DAYS BEFORE YOUR RENEWAL PAYMENT IS DUE. . .
Finally after I asked for a manager Steve got on the line. After discussing it for a while with him, he finally said they might release it without paying, but no guarantee, if I do the paper work for another registrar and that registrar contacts them to transfer it. They said the only other option was to wait another month for the domain to be released for non-payment. I asked if there was any way to get it released sooner and re-register with another registrar and he said No. Not unless I pay for another year of service. I told him I was going to contact another registrar and put in the paperwork to transfer it.
Al did email a CHANGE OF REGISTRAR AGREEMENT but it is an agreement to transfer a domain TO Network Solutions, not from. Here is the note they included with the form.
To switch from your registrar to Network Solutions, please complete the Change of Registrar Application template below and send it in ASCII format to registrar@netsol.com. Best Regards, Network Solutions World Wide Web: http://www.networksolutions.com E-mail: registrar@netsol.com
After our long conversations, they knew exactly what I was trying to do, and it was not to transfer a domain TO NSI. This was just another tactic to block us from transfering it.
Tue 2/8/00
I Spoke with Mirtha at namesecure.com and she said they have an account with Network Solutions to directly transfer the domain and once namesecure.com has a notarized letter from me requesting the transfer, Network Solutions cannot deny the transfer.
Wed 2/9/00
I mailed the notarized letter to namesecure.com requesting to transfer crel.com from Network Solutions to them.
Wed 2/16/00
I spoke with Cartel at namesecure.com. He had to look for the letter. He called me back and said the transfer will post within 24-48 hrs.
This is where I made a mistake and let our visa debit card get too low on funds before transfering more money into it. Then namesecure.com drug their feet several days on initiating the transfer which made things worse. The credit card only caused a 1 day delay.
Thur 2/17/00
1:30pm
I received email from jessica @ namesecure.com saying our credit card was declined for the change of registration fee.
3:40pm
I replied, stating that I transfered money into the account, and reqested they retry the card Friday 2/18/00 after the deposit shows.
Monday evening 2/21/00
the whois database still showed the registration at Network Solutions.
Tuesday afternoon on 2/22/00
The domain had been released and the whois database showed that it was available. This is 15 days after I told NSI I was going to try to transfer it to another registrar and they said they would not release it for a month.
I called namesecure.com and spoke with jessica. She said they had not put the order through to transfer it yet and asked me a few more questions about my contact information.
It had been 4 days since namesecure was supposed to run the credit card through and initiate the domain transfer and they had not contacted me about additional needed information until I called them. Of course, namesecure dragging their feet only made things worse.
She said the fee would now only be $35 since it would now be a new registration rather than a transfer. Otherwise, they had an additional fee to transfer the domain. She said that everything was now taken care of and the new registration should show with 24-48 hrs.
Wed 2/23/00 Early afternoon
The whois database shows that another company has registered crel.com through the following registrar.
Domain Name: CREL.COM Registrar: CORE INTERNET COUNCIL OF REGISTRARS Whois Server: whois.corenic.net Referral URL: www.corenic.net Name Server: NS.INTERNATIONALLY.COM Name Server: NS2.INTERNATIONALLY.COM Updated Date: 21-feb-2000
The whois record record at
http://www.whois.corenic.net/cgi-bin/whois.cgi
shows
CREL DOMAIN HOSTMASTER (template COCO-204133) 1220 North Market Street Wilmington, DE 19801 US Domain Name: crel.com Status: production Admin Contact, Technical Contact, Zone Contact: Domain Hostmaster (COCO-123128) domainreg@internationally.com +358 407751203 CORE Registrar: [CORE-11] Record created: 2000-02-22 05:01:58 MET by [CORE-11] Domain servers in listed order: ns.internationally.com 194.85.166.50 ns2.internationally.com 194.85.166.51 Database last updated on 2000-02-28 17:43:38 MET
Connecting to http://internationally.com/ showed that this is a company that registers domains just to sell them to people for hundreds of dollors.
I called Jesica at namesecure.com. They said CORE INTERNET COUNCIL OF REGISTRARS registered crel.com 23 minutes after it was released. She will try contacting them to find out what is going on.
She called in the evening and said she could not contact anybody from CORE (Why does that not surprise me?).
For 2 more days I tried to contact Network Solutions by phone at all times of the day from 8am on and all lines were always busy. I only got a recording saying try back later.
Fri 2/25/00
I emailed
domainreg@internationally.com and hostmaster@internic.net
mail to domainreg@internationally.com
Date: Fri, 25 Feb 2000 08:20:50 -0600 (CST) To: domainreg@internationally.com Subject: Our crel.com domain Sirs. I was in the process of transferring our domain, crel.com, from Network Solutions to namesecure.com but before we were able to complete the process, it had changed to your company in the whois database. Please advise us what is going on or what we should do. crel.com has been our domain for years. namesecure.com said it changed registrars just minutes before their request to network solutions went through. I do not know how this happened. Network solutions told me the domain would not be released for a month if it was not transfered the day before we mailed the notarized letter to namesecure.com to transfer it. We have not been able to reach network solutions since then about it on the phone no matter what time of day we try. Vincent Stemen
mail to hostmaster@internic.net
Date: Fri, 25 Feb 2000 08:39:10 -0600 (CST) To: hostmaster@internic.net Subject: our crel.com domain Sirs. I was in the process of transferring our domain, crel.com, from Network Solutions to namesecure.com but before we were able to complete the process, the registrar had changed to "CORE INTERNET COUNCIL OF REGISTRARS" in the whois database. Please advise us what is going on or what we should do. crel.com has been our domain for years. namesecure.com said it changed registrars just minutes before they attempted the request to you. I do not know how this happened. Steve, a manager at Network solutions told me the domain would not be released for another month if it was not paid or transfered when I spoke to him the day before we mailed the notarized letter to namesecure.com to transfer it on Feb, 9. We have not been able to reach network solutions since then about it on the phone no matter what time of day we try. Vincent Stemen
I received no replies from internationally.com.
Mon 2/28/00
I sent the following reply to NSI about earlier sending us the wrong form for transfering the domain.
To: Domain Registration Role AccountDate: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 11:35:04 -0600 (CST) Subject: Re: CHANGE OF REGISTRAR AGREEMENT Domain Registration Role Account writes: > Thank you for contacting Network Solutions. > > To switch from your registrar to Network Solutions, please complete the > Change of Registrar Application template below and send it in ASCII > format to registrar@netsol.com. > > Best Regards, > Network Solutions > > World Wide Web: http://www.networksolutions.com > E-mail: registrar@netsol.com > > Sirs. I was trying to change our registrar from Network Solutions, not to. I was in the process of transferring our domain, crel.com, from Network Solutions to namesecure.com but before we were able to complete the process, the registrar had changed to "CORE INTERNET COUNCIL OF REGISTRARS" in the whois database. Please advise us what is going on or what we should do. crel.com has been our domain since 1994. NameSecure.com said it changed registrars just minutes before they attempted the request to you. I do not know how this happened. Steve, a manager at Network solutions told me the domain would not be released for another month if it was not paid or transfered when I spoke to him two days before we mailed the notarized letter to namesecure.com to transfer it on Feb, 9. We have not been able to reach network solutions since then about it on the phone no matter what time of day we try. @internic.net>
Wed 3/1/00
Received the following email reply from domreg@internic.net (NSI).
Date: Wed, 1 Mar 2000 04:54:20 -0500 (EST) To: Vincent Stemen From: Domain Registration Role AccountSubject: Re: [NIC-000225.c772] our crel.com domain X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4 PL24 PGP2] Thank you for contacting Network Solutions. To perform the type of change you have inquired about, please use the Registrant Name Change Agreement, Version 3.0. The intuitive online formats, and easy-to-use text forms, can be found on Network Solutions' Web site at www.networksolutions.com This is the Whois info.: CREL DOMAIN HOSTMASTER (template COCO-204133) 1220 North Market Street Wilmington, DE 19801 US Domain Name: crel.com Status: production Admin Contact, Technical Contact, Zone Contact: Domain Hostmaster (COCO-123128) domainreg@internationally.com +358 407751203 CORE Registrar: CORE-11 Record created: 2000-02-22 05:01:58 MET by CORE-11 Domain servers in listed order: ns.internationally.com 194.85.166.50 ns2.internationally.com 194.85.166.51 The Registrant Name Change Agreement addresses the following types of changes: 1. Correcting misspellings in the name of the registrant; 2. Reflecting a change to the registrant's legal name; 3. Correcting a mistake in, or omission of, the organizational identifier for the registrant; and 4. Transferring a domain name registration to another registrant. Answers to the most frequently asked questions about the Registrant Name Change Agreement process can be found on our Web site. Starting at our home page at www.networksolutions.com, make the following selections: 1. Get Help 2. I do NOT have an Account Number and a password for this Web Address (an Internet Service Provider or Web hosting company hosts my Web Address) 3. Frequently Asked Questions on Registrant Name Change Best Regards, Kari P Network Solutions Registration Services World Wide Web: http://www.networksolutions.com E-mail: hostmaster@networksolutions.com Tax ID #: 52-1146119 cc 1/31/00 ========================================== > > Sirs. > > I was in the process of transferring our domain, crel.com, from Network > Solutions to namesecure.com but before we were able to complete the > process, the registrar had changed to "CORE INTERNET COUNCIL OF > REGISTRARS" in the whois database. Please advise us what is going on or > what we should do. crel.com has been our domain for years. namesecure.com > said it changed registrars just minutes before they attempted the request > to you. I do not know how this happened. Steve, a manager at Network > solutions told me the domain would not be released for another month if it > was not paid or transfered when I spoke to him the day before we mailed > the notarized letter to namesecure.com to transfer it on Feb, 9. We have > not been able to reach network solutions since then about it on the phone > no matter what time of day we try. > > > Vincent Stemen > @internic.net>
Notice that, even though they included my letter that they replied to, they completely ignored what I said in my email about the domain already being registered by somebody else and gave me more instructions about how to transfer a domain TO them.
Again, with no email success, I tried to contact NSI by phone during the following week at different times of the day from morning to evening and only got messages saying to call back later because of high call volume.
Tue 3/7/00
Finally after about a 20 minute hold time I got through to NSI on the phone.
First spoke to Eugene R.
-----------------------
He transfered me to the Register name change group
8:15am
I spoke with Emilio S. With the register name change group.
He said the registry chooses when to release the domain and Network Solutions does not know exactly when it will be released. Yet, the registry is run by Network solutions employees. They were and still are having problems with their email notification system. He first said they have a set time of 30 days after de-activation before domain names are deleted. Then he said they can arbitrarily delete it anywhere from 1 day to 30 days after it is put on hold. He said they have waited more than 30 days for some customers and there are no cases where they deleted it after one day.
Tue 3/7/00 1:00pm
Sent the following mail to INTERNET COUNCIL OF REGISTRARS <secretariat@corenic.org> Stating the situation and asking for advisement.
Date: Tue, 7 Mar 2000 12:51:02 -0600 (CST) To: INTERNET COUNCIL OF REGISTRARS <secretariat@corenic.org> Subject: Our crel.com domain Sirs. We have owned the crel.com domain for over 5 years since November 18,1994. Approx 2/4/00 crel.com was put on hold by Network Solutions for non-payment. We never received the invoice stating payment was due either via email or conventional mail (They told me today that they were having problems with their email notification system then, and currently still are). At that point we decided to transfer crel.com to another registrar service. Network Solutions told me by phone that it would be a month before the domain was released for non-payment. I told Network Solutions that we were going to go through another registrar to transfer it, rather than pay them for another year for a service that they would not be providing and while we were trying to transfer it, Network Solutions released it 2 weeks early and it was immediately re-registered by internationally.com using CORE as the registrar before we could even complete our transfer. Looking at www.internationally.com, they appear to be a cyber squatter registering domains to re-sell them. I do not know how internationally.com could have instantly known crel.com was released to register it out from under us. NameSecure.com said they beat us to the registration by about 20 minutes. I sent email to the new contact address, domainreg@internationally.com on 2/25/00 and have received no response. Below is a copy of what I wrote to them. ------------------------- Sirs. I was in the process of transferring our domain, crel.com, from Network Solutions to namesecure.com but before we were able to complete the process, it had changed to your company in the whois database. Please advise us what is going on or what we should do. crel.com has been our domain for years. namesecure.com said it changed registrars just minutes before their request to network solutions went through. I do not know how this happened. Network solutions told me the domain would not be released for a month if it was not transfered the day before we mailed the notarized letter to namesecure.com to transfer it. We have not been able to reach network solutions since then about it on the phone no matter what time of day we try. ------------------------- We have detailed notes of dates, times, and persons we talked to and what was said throughout this process if needed. Please advise. Thank you. Vincent Stemen
Wed 3/8/00
Received the following non-helpfull reply from CORE
Date: Wed, 08 Mar 2000 17:22:25 +0100 To: Vincent Stemen CC: sec@corenic.org From: "CORE Secretariat (H)"Subject: Re: Our crel.com domain Dear Vincent Stemen, Non-payment of legacy domains (i.e.g domains that were registered under the previous "register-first-pay-later" mechanism under a Network Solutions Monopoly) is one of the reasons for the rejection of transfers, accepted by ICANN and the US Government. It is therefore likely that an attempt to transfer an unpaid for domain away from Network Solutions will result in the rejection of the transfer request. It is unclear how long NSI will be allowed maintain unpaid domain names on its database, as logically it should be obliged to delete them after some time. Yours truly, Herve Edongo @corenic.org>
I replied with the following letter
Date: Wed, 8 Mar 2000 11:54:59 -0600 (CST) To: "CORE Secretariat (H)"Cc: sec@corenic.org Subject: Re: Our crel.com domain Sirs. If you connect to www.internationally.com, you will see they are a cyber squatter that registered our name out from under us just to sell it. They registered it immediately when it was released before NameSecure.com could even get it re-registered for us. Do you support cyber squatters? Are you going to allow this? I do not even see how they could have instantly known crel.com was briefly released out of over a 5 year time span unless Network Solutions conspired with them to take our domain and directly notified them, or they are continuously running millions of dns lookups every few minutes 24 hrs/day 365 days/year, in which I would think the administrators of the whois server would see that as an attack. It is apparent that something under the table is going on here. @corenic.org>
I received no further response from CORE.
Wed 3/8/00
I Emailed domains@internationally.com the same letter I earlier sent to their domainreg@internationally.com address on 2/25/00
This time I got this long winded reply which was basically blackmail for $500 holding our domain name for ransom. Notice they say the domain is NOT intended for sale. However, not long after sending us that email and getting no agreement from us to pay them for it, it went up for sale. Hmm...
At this point, we gave up, registered a new domain and started over. This had been our primary domain for over 5 years for our web site, all email for friends, family, business associates, mailing lists, etc. We had been dead in the water for over a month with our web site down and nobody able to contact us electronically. Perhaps we could have pursued it further by contacting ICANN but we needed to get back online and did not have the time or resources to continue pursuing it. Not only that, we have not seen any signs that ICANN has any policies (or perhaps no power) to regulate such business practices or I think NSI would not still be behaving so badly to this day, as you can see from the multiple lawsuits against them and articles about their anti-competitive business tactics.