It has just come to my attention that NetSol is now assigning a CNAME record
of resalehost.networksolutions.com to all expired domains. This is so the
web site will come up with a "This domain expired on this data, click here
to renew." page.
resalehost.networksolutions.com has IP 216.168.224.53, doesn't listen on
port 25, and has no MX record. The upshot is, mail to expired domains,
instead of being rejected outright in the SMTP dialog, sits in our queue for
5 days. Users don't know right away that mail isn't getting through.
This isn't quite on the same level as Sitefinder, but it's the same mindset,
make a change without examining the impact.
The operational impact has been support time spent finding out why mail has
supposedly disappeared, and/or is sitting in our queue.
Is this new, or have I had my head in the sand ?
I hadn't noticed it, but, I hope that ICANN will take appropriate action
on it.
It really is about time that Verisign got told "Either run the registry
as contracted for the public good, not as your own private revenue
producer, or, agree to terminate the contract and we'll find you a
successor on reasonable terms."
Owen
Are they doing this just to Verisign registered domains, or any domains expiring at any registrar?
If it's just verisign customers, I don't think this is the afront to the intenret that sitefinder was, but if it's all expired domains, then it's getting close.
Do any other .com registrars employ these tactics? I think I've seen it on other TLDs.
Thanks
-S
As far as I can tell, it's NetSol doing it to NetSol registered domains.
Sorry -- didn't mean to imply they had hijacked others.
It wasted about an hour of my time tracking down why several customers
suddenly couldn't get mail out, tracking down that
resalehost.networksolutionis.com wasn't, in fact, their outsourced e-mail
server, and I just wanted to save someone else that scavenger hunt.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but, nothing gives Netsol title to a domain that
someone happens to have registered through them after that registration
expires.
I apologize to Verisign for my earlier comment. I thought this was something
being done by the registry at the top level. My mistake.
Does anyone have a pointer to a document that specifies what a Registrars
obligations and rights are WRT expired domains?
Thanks,
Owen