GoDaddy Loophole?

[mick23]

Hi,

I just noted something that has me concerned.

I had a bit of battle, but won a domain I really wanted. It’s one I intend to develop a site for.

The domain was won on Godaddy Auctions and it’s a domain that either someone decided to let it drop / expire or forgot to renew registration for.

I have now paid my money and I now need to wait 14 days. During this window (from what I have read), the old user can still step up and renew for $10 and then I have lost out on the opportunity to own it.

My concern is not so much that they might claim it back, its more that Godaddy are showing full contact information of the old user in there whois database.

Prior to the auction I did research the domain, but through my own ignorance I did not know that godaddy disclose more in the own whois then they allow for other whois services. Checking again now through godaddy, I can see the guys email and all contact details.

What is to stop someone who lost out on the auction from contacting the original register by email or phone and saying ‘Hey, if you re register your domain for $10 I will cover your costs and give you $XXX on top!).

In fact what’s to stop anyone doing this with all the auctions? Seems like a big loophole to me or am I wrong and they have it covered?

 

[RazorNF]

Not much can be done to stop that - but at the same time, the person who dropped it might end up keeping it or asking even more, if you let them know there's interest in it.

 

[Jason.tv]

this is true, I do figure though if godaddy has been sending nonstop emails to the corresponding email within the whois to renew the domain; theres a good chance he will not view or receive an email from a enduser wanting to purchase the domain.

This has happened a few times and there is nothing you can do about it, but you have a good chance to receive the domain as prior owners email could be outdated throughout the years.

It's worse when your bidding on a godaddy auction for a name and someone else jacks you up to about $150 then user does not pay. Now godaddy does not award domain to second highest bidder, they would rather collect nothing and allow name to go redemption and cycle to pending delete for anyone to grab. (shame on godaddy)

thanks,

Jason

 

[equity78]

Any whois provider shows all the contact detail if the registrant did what they are supposed to and put it all in there.

You should not have to wait 14 days if you won this name. Read the godaddy thread here and it will explain a lot of this. Yes there are people that look at high value auctions and call or email the previous registrant, even if Go Daddy changed the whois to private on expiration, one could go to DomainTools.com and get the info. If this name was won at auction for under a couple hundred dollars I don't think you have to worry.

The previous registrant would not pay $10, they would have to pay renewal fee plus $80.