'Halvarez' at Snapnames auctions uncovered

[prague7]

Ooer - this one's going to run for a while... :O

From DomainNameNews:
SnapNames User Name “Halvarez” Was Nelson Brady, VP of Engineering Bidding on Domain Names [Updated]

[Updated] According to a statement from Oversee.net’s SnapNames, an employee was found to have bid in 5% of their auctions since 2005 and in some cases arranged for a partial refund of the sales price after winning an auction. DNN also confirmed the bidder as Nelson Brady, the VP of Engineering. He was bidding under the username “halvarez”.

From Snapnames:
SnapNames User Name “Halvarez” Was Employee Bidding on Domain Names

To avoid any question about whether the company benefited from this conduct, SnapNames will offer a rebate to impacted customers, including 5.22% interest (the highest applicable federal rate during the affected time period), of the difference between the prices they paid in winning auctions, and the prices they would have paid had the employee not bid in the auctions. Impacted customers will be notified by SnapNames or its representative with instructions for the offer of a rebate.

SnapNames also has taken further action to ensure its policies regarding auctions are followed, and the company remains committed to taking whatever action is necessary to protect the integrity of its auction platform.

SnapNames deeply regrets this situation and is committed to addressing its customers’ needs quickly and fairly.

There's also a FAQ page at Snapnames

 

[h2o]

Quite honesty, I don't think Halvarez is gone. He is still roaming at snapnames with a different identity. Just today, I backordered a name. Coincidentally, at the same exact minute another bidder also backordered that name. No one else is in this auction but he is in the lead. It's a decent name but I don't want to pay too much for it. I guess I will wait and see in a few days.

I am not going to increase my proxy bid until the last minutes of the auction. Cheers

 

[Kate]

If you were involved in this criminal matter and read the threads i have posted, then you would know I have already got the Police Agencies in US and Canada investigating this matter.

Blah blah. Anybody can post a form a on govt website.
For the record a lawsuit has been filed already, sometimes it's better to watch first then make moves. Let the show play for the time being.

 

[DN BROKER]

The management capability of the Oversee/Snap people looks to me to be totally out of its depth.

Thank You

 

[Dave_Z]

I WILL NOT ALLOW THIS TO DROP until the LAW decides WHO IS RIGHT AND WRONG

Unfortunately the law doesn't always decide who's "right" and "wrong" among those who
are involved. A lot of times, they try to resolve issues without unnecessary bloodshed.
(or even protect certain interests that lobby for them...)

One does what one can under the circumstances, even if others don't consider it enough.

 

[Rantwire]

What legal actions have people made so far with regards to the activity? Specifically, has anyone reported this to any local, state, or federal law enforcement representatives yet?

 

[namenut]

Get a life ****, its individuals like you who only talk **** and do nothing to protect our industry!

I know your a better person than this and I'm sure your just upset about the matter but
lets not digress in anger at each other. Maybe an apology is in order.

NN

 

[Kate]

Get a life ****, its individuals like you who only talk **** and do nothing to protect our industry!

You're always so overzealous. What are you trying to prove ?
Plus, I am a victim too. Do Snapnames even owe you a single cent ?

 

[gazzip]

I know your a better person than this and I'm sure your just upset about the matter but lets not digress in anger at each other. Maybe an apology is in order.

NN

Yeah, did'nt anyone ever tell you don't mess with a bunny wabbit !




.

 

[joeking]

Is Halvarez the only one?

Hi Guys,

I hate to be boring but I posted concerns to this forum nearly 3 years ago suspecting shill bidding on Snapnames from the alias poorman.

The auction I got my fingers burnt in was for dubaiproperty.com - I have pasted two horse race part of the auction below...

Auction End Time: 14-Jan-2007 12:15 PST

Bidder Date Bid Amount Comment
joe king 16-Jan-2007 06:55 PST $20,000.00 Completed
joe king 12-Jan-2007 10:24 PST $20,000.00 Bid Placed
poorman 12-Jan-2007 10:24 PST $19,998.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 18:07 PST $18,749.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 18:07 PST $18,499.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 16:50 PST $18,249.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 16:50 PST $17,999.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 16:50 PST $17,749.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 16:50 PST $17,499.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 16:40 PST $17,249.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 16:40 PST $16,999.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 16:40 PST $16,749.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 16:40 PST $16,499.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 16:39 PST $16,249.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 16:39 PST $15,999.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 16:39 PST $15,749.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 16:39 PST $15,499.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:40 PST $15,249.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:40 PST $14,999.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:40 PST $14,250.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:40 PST $14,000.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:39 PST $13,250.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:39 PST $13,000.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:39 PST $12,450.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:39 PST $12,200.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:15 PST $11,950.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:15 PST $11,700.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:10 PST $10,250.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:10 PST $10,000.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:10 PST $7,995.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:10 PST $7,895.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $6,101.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $6,001.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $5,101.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $5,001.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $4,100.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $4,000.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $2,600.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $2,500.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $1,550.00 Bid Placed
poorman 11-Jan-2007 14:09 PST $1,500.00 Bid Placed
joe king 11-Jan-2007 11:50 PST $1,050.00 Bid Placed
...I have omitted other peoples identities from hereon...

I also found the following auction involving 'poorman' which has a similar bidding pattern...

http://www.namepros.com/domain-name-discussion/182874-bayblogs-com-live-auction-at-snapnames.html

In both cases, poorman would have been fully aware of the fact that proxy bids had been left on both of these auctions - either courtesy of insider information or by watching the timing and incremental increases of counter bids. With this knowledge, poorman would then be fully aware either way of the maximum proxy bid and thus would be able to make a final bid based upon this.

In the case of my $20,000 auction, poorman would have known that the proxy bid was $20,000 but decided not to bid again to see if they could clinch the sale. A little suspect when one is prepared to pay $19,998 for a domain name (a large sum of money) but not willing to try a that little extra over the remaining 44 hours of the 72 hour auction.

In the case of the babyblogs.com auction, again, poorman was willing to pay $999 but knowing that the proxy bid was $1,000 was not willing to pay the extra to try and clinch the sale despite having more than 48 hours to do so.

Now of course, poorman with 'insider-style' knowledge did not have to be an employee of Snapnames but could have been an employee with bogus contact details in their account - especially if they were colluding with Snapnames to guarantee top dollar for auctions with proxy bids.

In both cases Snapnames.com were guaranteed the maximum proxy bid - nice business model.

Has anyone got any advice for me or had similar experiences with poorman?

Furthermore, has anyone got any advice for me with regards to legal action? I am considering joining the class action case being taken up by Cueto Law Group: Miami International Law Attorney: Santiago Cueto Global Business Lawyer: International Litigation and Arbitration

Thanks for your help,

Joe

 

[Ms Domainer]

*

I suspect that there were (and maybe still are) other shill accounts at Snapnames; however, I do believe it becomes a bit tricky when you have just suspicions.

What if your competitor is innocent? Then you have outted his name for nothing.

On the other hand, how do we find out trends if we don't share information?

I'm wondering if there is a way that a trusted member who has the ability and program to crunch the numbers could gather info via PM?

In other words, suspicious activity could be tracked without outting someone who may simply be a frequent bidder, not a shill. Also, only one or two people would have the aliases of the suspicious bidders, who would only be outted if there is overwhelming evidence against them.

I hope that we can agree that innocent bidders, for their financial security, should retain their privacy.




*

 

[joeking]

You are absolutely correct about 'outing' innocent people. I was assuming that the name poorman was an alias.

 

[Ms Domainer]

You are absolutely correct about 'outing' innocent people. I was assuming that the name poorman was an alias.

*

True, but even aliases can be easy to figure out.

If the other bidder beats you, wait a few days, and look the domain up, and, chances are, you will figure out who the bidder is--unless its a proxy registration or a third-party bidder.


*

 

[gazzip]

Hi Joe, I was in watching that auction, as were a couple of other namepros members I know of, one of them assured me they know who the bidder poorman is so maybe they will contact you with more info ?

It does look a bit suspect but I know of another name poorman won at snapnames, I'll sent the details by PM so you can contact them, I doubt they would have a problem talking to you considering this whole Halvarez scam.

I seem to be one of few that does'nt for one minute beleive Nelson Brady would have just used one bidding ID all these years considering all the talk on the forums about him


Personally I think you did really well getting it for that price but it was way out of my league :bingo:

PM sent !

.

 

[Jawed]

You are absolutely correct about 'outing' innocent people. I was assuming that the name poorman was an alias.

Joe,

Did poorman ever contact you in response to your request to Deb? Deb seems to know too much though. :]

 

[gazzip]

If Halvarez was not in that auction, that would make me even more suspicious.).

Halvarez was'nt in the auction....but that don't mean Brady was'nt :tri:






.

 

[DN BROKER]

Halvarez was'nt in the auction....but that don't mean Brady was'nt :tri:

.

Agreed, as stated before. My bid of $9 US for a reg fee domain ends up costing me $200. All because I was stupid enough to place a proxy bid of $200! Not thinking I will be cheated by a trusted partner of the Domaining Industry. Unfortunately not like my Dreams, this nightmare is real and it's damaging prices and profits of our industry for years to come.

Life's to short for me to describe how betrayed I feel.

Take my loss of $200 and multiply that by x amount of domains/customers they cheated.

The Boys n Girls in Blue will do the math for us and expose (MR.X and his associates)

Anyone know the time?

COUNTDOWN TO JAIL:

XX:XX:XV:XII IV

 

[bobbarato]

"I am shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!"

Geez, Ebay should come in and take over!

With their sterling reputation and squeaky clean bidness practices, Ebay will restore confidence in a matter of seconds...no wait make that NANOSECONDS!

:O

Let's face it, both "Max Bid" and online gambling rely on the honesty of the hosting institution, if there is none, then you're worse off than being blind drunk, at the strip club with pockets full of cash and the ladies have their hands in there...

:lala:

 

[Domo Sapiens]

2nd class action
Domain Name Wire » News » Second Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Oversee.net and SnapNames - The Domain Industry's News Source

 

[accent]

Folks, before you sign up for any class action do some research --- often the lawyers get most of the settlement.

Regardless there is no hurry.

 

[Domo Sapiens]

wise words, likewise before you take the rebate...
Things will start unfolding sooner than later ...

 

[Rantwire]

Perhaps I'm a bit of a rube here, and I certainly don't mean to be disrespectful. But frankly, if I were to bid for a domain that was worth any amount over a few hundred dollars, I would monitor the auction personally, and not post any proxy amounts in the first place. Without the proxy, there is no inside collusion, other than perhaps your bidding patterns from other auctions, or unless you have a legit competitor using proxies. If needed, I could always come back on the last scheduled day and put in a higher bid and see if there are any proxies in play from others. I realize that one may be bidding on hundreds of domains at at time, but I don't think one is bidding on hundreds of domains with bid amounts in the five figures at a time.

Could someone enlighten me just a tad here? My own strategy is to pick up domains on the 5$ godaddy site for a quick 50-100 dollar flip, so I'm not really in the know here when it comes to high-level domains.

 

[DN BROKER]

Perhaps I'm a bit of a rube here, and I certainly don't mean to be disrespectful. But frankly, if I were to bid for a domain that was worth any amount over a few hundred dollars, I would monitor the auction personally, and not post any proxy amounts in the first place. Without the proxy, there is no inside collusion, other than perhaps your bidding patterns from other auctions, or unless you have a legit competitor using proxies. If needed, I could always come back on the last scheduled day and put in a higher bid and see if there are any proxies in play from others. I realize that one may be bidding on hundreds of domains at at time, but I don't think one is bidding on hundreds of domains with bid amounts in the five figures at a time.

Could someone enlighten me just a tad here? My own strategy is to pick up domains on the 5$ godaddy site for a quick 50-100 dollar flip, so I'm not really in the know here when it comes to high-level domains.

You got a lot of reading to do.... Domaining is like Poker, the more cash you got the more hands you play! More money the more profit! %%-%%-%%-

 

[cache]

If you are uncertain the value of the domain, you should not use proxy. However a lot of domains have the min support value, you may simply use proxy to save some time. There is no point to get excited about the bidding everyday.

 

[deb]

joeking "there's nothing worse than winning an auction you don't intend to win." well why did you bid $20,000?? why??

If you didnt want to pay $20,000 why bid $20,000.

You won fair and square joeking please pm me if you have any issues rather than slander innocent people.

 

[Peter]

joeking "there's nothing worse than winning an auction you don't intend to win." well why did you bid $20,000?? why?
.

I think you miss understook what JoeKing meant,

He was insinuating that poorman was ensuring he didn't win an auction that he didn't want to win. He is not claiming he didn't want to win it.