Transfer of Authorisation Code / EPP and Escrow.com

[stupot]

Hi,

I'm just in the process of selling my domain and am doing it via escrow.com.

The buyer has asked me to send him the Authorisation code / EPP, which I have gone and done.

What is it that escrow.com wants to see? Couldn't I just go ahead and change the whois contact details into the name of the buyer? Would this be suffice to finalise the transaction? Should I do this as well as having sent the EPP?

Although I trust the buyer somewhat, otherwise I wouldn't have made the transaction, there is always that niggling worry that they could reneg in the deal, get their money back and keep the domain.

Would it be in my best interest to change the whois while they have the EPP Key and confirm with escrow.com that the details have changed?

Any help would be grateful.

 

[DotWeekly]

You have pointed out the HUGE flaw with Escrow.com. A seller can just change the whois to show the owners info and Never push/transfer the domain!

In your case, NO, you should not just change the whois information. The reason for the EPP code, is so the buyer can transfer the domain name to their registrar of choice (change of ownership). By just changing the information in whois, doesn't make them the owner. The domain has to be in the buyers registrar account!

 

[DomainTalker]

You have pointed out the HUGE flaw with Escrow.com. A seller can just change the whois to show the owners info and Never push/transfer the domain!

Well....Escrow.com won't release the funds to the seller until the buyer confirms to Escrow.com that he has received the domain into his account....ie its been properly transferred to him....If the buyer doesn't receive the domain into their Registrar account, then he won't confirm the sale to Escrow.com, and Escrow.com won't release the funds to the seller.

So, a seller can't defraud by simply changing the Whois, and claiming to have sent the domain.


But...the reverse could possibly happen...The buyer could try to perpetrate a fraud.

...ie the buyer lodges funds into Escrow.com....the seller then properly transfers the domain to the buyer...Then, the buyer (who now has control of the domain) changes the Whois details back to the seller's details....and, then complains to Escrow.com that the seller never transferred the domain, and asks for his money back....Would Escrow.com return the money to the 'buyer'? - And, therefore allow the domain to be stolen?


Now, you'd like to think that it'd be easy to prove to Escrow.com that the domain had changed registrars (or, at least, that it had changed accounts within the same registrar, if it'd been pushed) - and, that the registrars would cooperate in providing that info...thus proving the 'buyer' was lying, and so release the funds to the seller...


...But, would Escrow.com cooperate with the seller, when he claims that the domain HAD been properly transferred?...Anyone know how efficient Escrow.com is in this way, if a problem like this occurred?

.

 

[DotWeekly]

I just blogged about this...

I think the best escrow services for domain transactions are ones that Handle the domain as well as the money. Moniker.com and EscrowDNS.com are two that I know handle the push/transfer to the buyer.

I don't know why anybody would hold faith or trust that an escrow company will "believe" me or not if a push/transfer took place or take a chance that there was any question the transfer took place!

 

[DomainTalker]

I think the best escrow services for domain transactions are ones that Handle the domain as well as the money. Moniker.com and EscrowDNS.com are two that I know handle the push/transfer to the buyer.

Good point, Yofie...

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