Escrow.com Is Now Asking For Photos of Personal Docs

[Cdomains]

Escrow/com Is Now Asking For Photos of Personal Documents.

I just logged in to Escrow/com and they are now asking for extensive verification including Photos or scans of ID's and other personal and business documents to be stored on their servers.

I have used them for years for all my transactions.

With all the hacks of servers happening around the world and security breaches exposing us to identity theft I have refused to give photos of my ID's and other documents to companies who request it.

I will not do business with Flippa for this reason.

I recently had my account frozen at a registrar that asked me for this and I refused.

Will you give photos of your personal ID's, bank records, etc to Escrow/com or will you use another service?

Personally, I think I am going to take my business somewhere else.

I am really disappointed about this after all these years.

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Related:

• New Escrow.com Account Verification Process

 

[ResoluteDomains]

I came across this service: https://gumroad.com/ and it seems they aim at helping people sell digital goods. I wonder if this is also an option to consider? There is the risk of credit card chargebacks, friendly fraud, etc but I wonder if there is business insurance available to cover that risk though. I havent read too deeply into this yet.

 

[creataweb]

I came across this service: https://gumroad.com/ and it seems they aim at helping people sell digital goods. I wonder if this is also an option to consider? There is the risk of credit card chargebacks, friendly fraud, etc but I wonder if there is business insurance available to cover that risk though. I havent read too deeply into this yet.

The guy in there looks like Voltron.

 

[decode]

creepy
Also, illegal for many co's to upload those docs to a place like escrow.com

Someone smart out there will create a better alt to this and "make chedda like a food inspector."

 

[Centaur]

Let's find an alternative. Once these company become big they start pushing people around.

 

[creataweb]

Let's find an alternative. Once these company become big they start pushing people around.

Crowdfund me I'll set one up all legal and such.

 

[parkerpeter223]

When everyhting is already going fine, Then why do they need identities.. what change will it make? Is there any possiblity of more trust or anything ?

 

[dollarfield]

We need some domainers to come forward and create a domainer friendly Escrow Service.

 

[wwwweb]

We need some domainers to come forward and create a domainer friendly Escrow Service.

They did it was agreed.com, it was bought by escrow.

There was a time when many were jumping with joy, but many said competition in this segment is good, here we are in 2017, with only a few choices.

 

[KoolKat]

Almost lost a sale this week because of this new policy. It was a headache for the buyer (from Czech Republic). We ended up having to close via Sedo. He took it upon himself to track the name down at Sedo and start the transaction there even willing to pay a premium to not deal with Escrow after sending bills and other info. I have no problem being verified but to ask this of every single one time client is bad for business. Here is a quote from my client (glad he had a sense of humor lol) :

Hi James,

Thank you, dealing with escrow was like buying color balloons from Stevie Wonder.
But with Sedo.com it was quick and I dont need spend time with verify my grandma.

Thank you again and have a great day!

Escrow has dealt with this matter very poorly. Very lucky to not have lost this sale.

 

[domainbartender]

What needs to be done to revert this new law? In brick and mortar shops they'd look at you like you've gone crazy if you ask for an ID and their utility bill. Treating every person like a potential criminal is a crime in itself. It defies the whole purpose of shopping online and using an escrow service... but surely Escrow can't be the only company being affected by this. Focus on changing the law. I think the law makers are testing the waters to see how far they can go (or rather testing people's ability to make their voices heard). It will be implemented by 2018 if I remember correctly. This is not the way to go forward technologically. It should be easier to shop online than it is offline. It needs to be as safe as possible. Remember the law needs to work for the people. Giving our address, bank account details, and full name is more than enough for any business. There is no valid reason to provide any proof. The vast majority of people only use made up details to maintain their anonymity. They have no bad intentions. The product gets shipped where you want it to get shipped. If it gets shipped to the wrong address, you don't get the product. The money is sent to your bank account, and your full name must obviously match or it doesn't go through. The system has enough safety precautions already. Being fairly anonymous shouldn't be disallowed. Especially for non-tangible products in an open web.

 

[carob]

Silly me All I had to do was - a) delete current escrow account email from "escrow integration" screen. b) resubmit "escrow integration" form without agreeing to the terms.

And - no more escrow.com integration for transactions powered by Uniregistry brokers for my account. I would have instructed brokers to send buyers to Uniregistry Marketplace processing anyway, but still... (the whole Uni system is too automated sometimes).

As a side note, if the memory serves me correctly, this particular marketplace only accepts wires if the domain is at outside registrar. Domain "in sale" needs to be with Uniregistry for the whole set of payment options. Well, even more reasons to consolidate domains with Uniregistry registrar (which is a good registrar)

Hi if you delete escrow.com from DNS you can use Uniregistry escrow?

Does the domain have to be at Uniregistry? Or get transferred there?

http://domainnamewire.com/2016/11/29/completing-transaction-uniregistry-market/

https://uniregistry.com/market-fees-rules

 

[rockefeller]

I verified myself right away, only took a minute and its not uncommon when dealing with financial institutions in the US. I had to do the same thing for my bitcoin exchange, sent them the same documents.

One thing that is more concerning to me are the people working at Escrow.com. Several months ago they sent me a wire transfer and they typed my account number in their system incorrectly, the next day I received a notice saying the wire transfer was returned and that they were charging me a $30 fee. When Escrow.com sends you a wire transfer they send you the "cashpro notification" email once the wire goes out, that's how I knew it was to the wrong account because the account number was incorrect in that email. Thankfully they refunded me the "fine" and resent the wire to the correct account.

Now fast forward to today, I was supposed to be receiving an ACH payment from them (much cheaper than wire transfers since Escrow charges a fee AND your receiving bank charges you a fee). Any way, logged into my account yesterday and no ACH deposit, though that was weird and you don't receive an email confirmation from them so I reached out to them, they emailed me last night (their support is based overseas now which is why you'll receive replies and payments are approved at all hours of the night) and they confirmed that the ACH was sent to my desired account. Login to my bank this AM, nothing. Just by happenstance I logged into my OTHER separate account at the same credit union and sure as $hit, there it was. Right now I'm trying to figure out if it was the credit unions fault or escrow.com's fault. I find it odd that Escrow.com emailed me confirming the last 4 digits of my account that it was sent to and it ended up in an entirely different account.

 

[Keith]

This seems to only apply to users using their bank to make/receive direct payments. Not an issue for me since I pay with PayPal or CC. I have a sale taking place there now so it will be interesting to see if the buyer says anything. He's using a wire transfer...

PayPal is a far better/cheaper option as long as you do your homework. I use it for about 80% of my deals and have never been burned.

 

[rockefeller]

I verified myself right away, only took a minute and its not uncommon when dealing with financial institutions in the US. I had to do the same thing for my bitcoin exchange, sent them the same documents.

One thing that is more concerning to me are the people working at Escrow.com. Several months ago they sent me a wire transfer and they typed my account number in their system incorrectly, the next day I received a notice saying the wire transfer was returned and that they were charging me a $30 fee. When Escrow.com sends you a wire transfer they send you the "cashpro notification" email once the wire goes out, that's how I knew it was to the wrong account because the account number was incorrect in that email. Thankfully they refunded me the "fine" and resent the wire to the correct account.

Now fast forward to today, I was supposed to be receiving an ACH payment from them (much cheaper than wire transfers since Escrow charges a fee AND your receiving bank charges you a fee). Any way, logged into my account yesterday and no ACH deposit, though that was weird and you don't receive an email confirmation from them so I reached out to them, they emailed me last night (their support is based overseas now which is why you'll receive replies and payments are approved at all hours of the night) and they confirmed that the ACH was sent to my desired account. Login to my bank this AM, nothing. Just by happenstance I logged into my OTHER separate account at the same credit union and sure as $hit, there it was. Right now I'm trying to figure out if it was the credit unions fault or escrow.com's fault. I find it odd that Escrow.com emailed me confirming the last 4 digits of my account that it was sent to and it ended up in an entirely different account.

Ok get this. So here's what happened:

-Escrow.com sent the funds to my "unverified" account, which isn't where I wanted them to go but had selected that payout profile when the transaction was first created 2 weeks ago.

I've always been under the impression that if you change the payout profile during a transaction that the funds will be disbursed to whatever account that is when the transaction closes.

So, in the end, it was basically my fault.

 

[wwwweb]

This seems to only apply to users using their bank to make/receive direct payments. Not an issue for me since I pay with PayPal or CC. I have a sale taking place there now so it will be interesting to see if the buyer says anything. He's using a wire transfer...

PayPal is a far better/cheaper option as long as you do your homework. I use it for about 80% of my deals and have never been burned.

All customers are required to verify their identity in order to transact using Escrow.com.

 

[Keith]

All customers are required to verify their identity in order to transact using Escrow.com.

Nope. I just did a mid $xxxx deal there this past week as a seller. I have not sent any identification documents. It's only for direct banking transactions.

 

[tonecas]

I had a high $xxxx deal this past week as a buyer and did not had to submit documents, notwithstanding the message that says that I should verify my account by providing documentation. payment made by wire transfer

 

[wwwweb]

I had a high $xxxx deal this past week as a buyer and did not had to submit documents, notwithstanding the message that says that I should verify my account by providing documentation. payment made by wire transfer

Probably a grace period. I have two transactions in Escrow, I have seen the message, but today I got an email with that direct link.

So maybe grace is over at the end of January, I don't think any of my 2 buyers will be happy if they make them submit after they have submitted payment now.

Will find out.

 

[equity78]

Because there's a lot of wussies in this industry worried about stepping on toes

State your worries, suggestions, and complaints! Not to be a "troll" but to try and make things better!

I wrote about it right away and mentioned people here not happy about it.

http://tldinvestors.com/2017/01/esc...s-and-its-angering-some-namepros-members.html

 

[DNabc]

I'm livid, I sent them the docs and they told me "the image quality of the documents you uploaded does not meet our minimum standard. Please resubmit using higher quality images."

Are you serious? Are you making me lose precious time? The same documents used by local banks, Paypal or Payoneer are not enough for Escrow.com?
The problem is that I got this after a deal was being closed with them (they have the money now), or you can be sure I would not send anything else.

 

[Cdomains]

Getting a buyer to buy the domain is already tough, now you ask us to persuade the buyer giving out their sensitive information ? Are you NUT ?

Well said!

 

[DNabc]

"black and white scans/photos are not acceptable."

Nice.

How many buyers you know will completely lose their patience with this?
We may endure something to earn, but to spend?

 

[johname]

The problem is to the escrow company, you look like the dummy when complaining about their security measures being too strict. So better to just find a plan B and roll with it when appropriate.

 

[DNabc]

Where I live, Portugal, it's forbidden to demand for a black and white scan of your identification card.
http://www.jornaldenegocios.pt/econ...cartao_de_cidadao_vai_dar_multa_ate_750_euros

Even so I sent them, but it's not enough, must be in color. Ok...
Of course we can choose an alternative escrow, but I currently have a payment there and deals done through Uniregistry brokers go through escrow.com

 

[poweredbyme]

I don't believe an internet based company is obligated ask for ID documents. Because people use credit card or bank account to send or receive money. So the money is easily traceable with credit card number or bank account. They already know IP numbers of the users. Internet activity of a person is traceable by all means, none of us can stay anonymous. If we send or receive money we have to use banking system where every info about us is always recorded.

In my opinion, only banks have to ask for our ID documents. Because banks work with hard cash as they are offline businesses. Their internet banking service doesn't make them 100% internet based business. When saying "escrow" maybe the law wants to say (offline) escrow services have to require ID documents of users when users pay and receive in real cash in hand. Because only cash in hand is dangerous, IMHO. So the laws must be changed to make this difference clearer.

Personally I don't think any business needs to verify ID documents of people unless they work with hard cash in hand.