Verisign buys every existing .com and .net !

[Dugmor]

INTERNET

Verisign done low hand on the addresss Internet

NOUVELOBS.COM | 19.09.03 | 14:36

The American giant is itself fitting all the addresss Internet in. com and. net not existing again. Disturbing for the respect of private life.

Since on Tuesdays September 16, to the least typing error in an address Internet in. com or. net, you will meet again certainly with Verisign. This American giant of the security certification electronic and that manages also the domain names in. com and. net did low hand on all the nonexistent addresss. Concretely, there is no longer any possibility to create an address in these domains. It will be necessary to repurchase it to Verisign. This decision will allow for him also which knowledges address the most often are typed, which syntax errors often are reproduced them and thus to sell to the strong price the addresss having more "successes". This is not nevertheless the alone financial advantage for the American corporation, since the connection flood on his site will allow for him to sell more pub.

Fuzzy on the private data

But this unilateral decision of Verisign, to which the icann (Internet corporate Body for Assigned Names and Numbers), the highest authority of the internet in regards to the granting of domain names, has not again reacts, has more disturbing consequences again. A mall of which addresses it addressee (always in. com or in. net) erroneous east will be directed towards the waiters of Verisign before to return you. Verisign does not specify this that it will be done collected the news. For his politics of treatment of the personal data is for the less fuzzy one: "no information concerning the ethnic origin, the religious or political opinions, health or sexual life" are not collected, on the other hand Verisign confesses to keep track of "the address IP of visitors, as well as of each of the visited orderlies, the type and the configuration of the used navigator and the domain name of which come you".

The community reacts

In the community Internet, that already carried little Verisign in his c?ur, because of its accointances with the complex American militaro-industriel, this is the emotion. A petition was posted on-line, and solutions to avoid going through the waiters of Verisign are posted on-line on different sites, and a software, Bind, allows bypasses the taxed measure unilaterally by Verisign.

This was translated from French to English so it may be messed up !

Here is the original news version !

[Theo]

oh my god

[hitman699]

holy shit... this isn't a joke. If I type dhfkjsgsdjkgfsdjk.com

I get verisign

[hitman699]

but I do believe its because they run the registry and its a nicer way of saying dns error.. not that they own them

[Theo]

you know what's sad?

nobody can stop them now from doing it. They got all the info wanted in 2 days and now they make use of it with the ugliest way.

[Dugmor]

Originally posted by hitman699
holy shit... this isn't a joke. If I type dhfkjsgsdjkgfsdjk.com

I get verisign

Type what ever the fu*k you want !

They now own everything !

This is crazy !

[Theo]

they didnt buy the domains yet


you get the common redirection

that's some fucked up repugnant shit

[iroc409]

interesting, i'm not getting verisign, i keep getting a page not found...

verisign here... maybe the changes haven't propagated everywhere just yet

[Niki]

Originally posted by hitman699
holy shit... this isn't a joke. If I type dhfkjsgsdjkgfsdjk.com

I get verisign

that's why I badly need some new PR checker ... it's impossible to check expired domain for it's PR

fuck verisgn!

[Theo]

so from now on if you want a domain for you business you'll have to pay the price they demand and you have seen what kind of $ they ask such companies for registered stupid domains......

I'd like to read an English article on this. My french sucks.

Linkage?

Originally posted by Soul_Rebel
so from now on if you want a domain for you business you'll have to pay the price they demand and you have seen what kind of $ they ask such companies for registered stupid domains......

exactly.


but does Verisign really OWN all these domains or is it just a way for them to redirect if the requested DNS info is not available?

if they own everything and will dictate prices on the domains that haven't been purchased just yet, how many fucking domains did they buy then, and what gives them the right to do so, if they didn't buy them?

[AWC]

On Monday September 15th, 2003 VeriSign added a wildcard A record to the .com and .net top level domains. As a result of this action all .com and .net domains will appear to exist even when they do not.

[loco12]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3122086.stm

[Theo]

they do not own them yet

but they collected all the info with the domains that generate the most typeins. So, they are going to buy all of them. Many many domains, but the cost is nothing for them. The top 100k domains that bring typeins will cost them something like $400k or less i guess

[Manga1]

I checked some domains. They are redirected to a Verisign page but when I check the whois they are still available for registration.

[hitman699]

Originally posted by Soul_Rebel
so from now on if you want a domain for you business you'll have to pay the price they demand and you have seen what kind of $ they ask such companies for registered stupid domains......

These domains still show avail at godaddy . My guess is they just decided to put up splash pages until there registered instead of people getting the domain not found messages. otherwise they would link directly to verisign corp site and say something like "buy me now". Otherwise this would be like some of those other tlld's like tv. Where they can set the price based on the domain name. and I doubt icann would let them monopolize the address space.


or maybe Im wrong

[Manga1]

Originally posted by Soul_Rebel
they do not own them yet

but they collected all the info with the domains that generate the most typeins. So, they are going to buy all of them. Many many domains, but the cost is nothing more them. The top 100k domains that bring typeins will cost them something like $400k or less i guess

Damn! That's fucked!

[Theo]

largest scam ever made online

and its done by a greek ceo


let's start a donation service to support lawsuits against these clowns

[Manga1]

Originally posted by Soul_Rebel
largest scam ever made online

and its done by a greek ceo


let's start a donation service to support lawsuits against these clowns

Goddamn Greeks!

[KC]

They are already being sued for unfair business practices.

They won't get away with it.

http://newsroom.eworldwire.com/view_release.php?id=1716

VeriSign Inc. To Be Sued By Popular Enterprises For $100 Million.

Popular Enterprises LLC, the parent company of Netster.com, has filed a $100 million dollar lawsuit against VeriSign, Inc.


KNOXVILLE, Tenn./EWORLDWIRE/Sep. 18, 2003 --- Popular Enterprises LLC, the parent company of Netster.com, has filed a $100 million dollar lawsuit against VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN)The Complaint alleges antitrust violations, unfair competition and violations of the Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act based upon VeriSign's release of the http://sitefinder.verisign.com product. The "Sitefinder" service allows VeriSign to monopolize unregistered ".com" and ".net" domains, and to profit by redirecting all Internet traffic for these sites to pay-for-placement sites controlled by VeriSign. If they are allowed to operate Sitefinder, VeriSign will now profit from Internet traffic directed to all unregistered domain names, including thousands of domain names that VeriSign has refused to allow the public to register. The suit requests injunctive relief to prevent VeriSign from operating Sitefinder, and to otherwise cease its monopolistic practices.

The suit also alleges that Sitefinder improperly interferes with other competing search systems, including Netster's own "SmartBrowse." Typically users are shown a generic "cannot be found" page when users try to access an unregistered domain. The SmartBrowse system identifies this error and prompts the user with other potentially related Internet sites and search options. Many Internet search companies, including Microsoft and AOL, offer a similar search function to their subscribers. However, the Complaint alleges that VeriSign's latest release effectively "hijacks" all Internet traffic and redirects them to VeriSign's own site. Existing businesses are left unable to use their technology, as the Sitefinder service bypasses these applications.

President of Popular Enterprises, William Marquez, said, "Rather than compete fairly in the search business, VeriSign has used its monopoly to hijack Internet traffic. Imagine the uproar if the D.O.T. suddenly decided to direct all the traffic off the Interstates only to exits with D.O.T. sponsored hotels and restaurants." Marquez went on to add that VeriSign is causing his business harm by intentionally redirecting users of Netster and other search companies that have established their own user base. Marquez also believes that the current actions by VeriSign far exceed the scope of authority VeriSign was granted by the National Science Foundation.

Using its control of domain name registration, VeriSign has refused to allow the registration of certain names that it has deemed obscene or otherwise undesirable to release into the public domain. However, Verisign has also refused registration for other common domain names such as 1.com, 2.com, etc. It is believed that the total number of potential domain names VeriSign has refused and/or will refuse to register ranges in the hundreds of thousands. Ironically, by using Sitefinder, VeriSign will now capitalize on the very domain names it has refused to register by redirecting and monetizing all Internet traffic to these sites.

Many search-related companies have invested substantial funds into developing applications that are distributed to their subscribers. Marquez noted that substantial decreases in search revenue has been felt, and that VeriSign is using its control over the Internet to manipulate business from those who have spent years attracting loyal users. Marquez noted, "This suit stands for all companies that have spent time and money attracting business."

Popular Enterprises has been in the search business for a number of years, and has developed its trademarked "Netster" name into a top 500 website and is listed as the 10th largest search portal in the country by Jupiter Media Metrix. More information about the lawsuit at:
http://search.netster.com/about/lawsuit.asp. In addition, an explanation of SmartBrowse can be found at: http://search.netster.com/smartbrowse/promo.asp.

[Dugmor]

Here is a Stop Verisign DNS Abuse petition !

[swedguy]

Privacy policy on the cookies set on the non-registered domains

http://www.omniture.com/policy.html

[icedemon]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...ign_lawsuit_dc

[Theo]

omniture.com is the company that used to grab the stats. They used a custom made counter/stats named G2 from what I saw.

[KC]

I wouldn't be surprised if they get a TRO this week.. (ie: Today!)

Verisign won't get away with it.. their stockholders don't think so either.

http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=VRSN

That stock would be through the roof if investors thought they'd be able to defend the suit.

[sumphatpimp]

this won't fly for long.

isn't this what Zuccurini went to jail for a week or so ago?
he got nailed for redirecting kids domains like Disney.com and other stuff that was mispelled to porn?

well isn't verisign doing the same redirecting those domains?
its your domain and your typo, don't see how this can be legal?
if it is then buy up all your typos, then your can redirect them to where you want.

looks like a lot of sueing going to go on.

[Theo]

i bet they will do it

they will have now reviewers to see all top typein domains if they conflict with anyones business and then bulk register them all.

[Theo]

Verisign Speaks!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Lane]

people should build bots to poison their database, asap
sending traffic to really absurd domains, so they cant track which domains actually get the most typeins...

[Donny]

Make friends with Gary Kremen. When his suit against Verisgn (for allowing sex.com to be stolen) is settled, and he OWNS them, he'll be a very powerful man indeed!

[nobull]

calm down everyone.... they are not registering any domains here. They own the root DNS entries for all .com and .net domains. All they did was put in an entry that says "If the domain does not have a record send them to us". I think this is a very unfair thing to do and I'm 100% against it. This will only last a few days and get the boot.

[justsexxx]

Originally posted by iroc409
interesting, i'm not getting verisign, i keep getting a page not found...

Maybe your ISP blocked it...I have an ISP who is also blocking verisign page not founds....

Andre

[KRL]

Apparently my ISP has blocked them also.

Fucking scamming scumbags.

I say string that CEO up by his balls.

[KMR Stitch]

I wonder what the typing traffic for them is at.

[Niki]

guys, please post your DNS IP if your ISP blocks them, I would like to try it

thanks

[Shap]

Important note. Verisign has also changed it so that as soon as your domain expires BAM it re-directs to them. We had one that expired yesterday at midnight, and at 12:01 they had the traffic going there way. I thought it used to take at least a month before it gets redirected. Don't let domains expire!

[GoGoBar]

I actually noticed this yesterday, was wondering why

http://www.alexa.com/data/details/tr...sign.com#graph

[xxxinnovations]

When I go to directnic, I am still able to register whatever I want

[wsjb78]

You did not notice this on Tuesday???

Anyway, Bind Patch: http://www.isc.org/products/BIND/delegation-only.html

VeriSign's steps raise a couple of issues:

- Trademark Infringement -- If you enter some trademark.com address that hasn't been registered before you end up at VeriSign. Wouldn't that be trademark infringement?

- Email Spam: Normally before an email server accepts incoming mails it checks whether the sender's domain exist. Due to VeriSign now all domains exist hence this blockade is just utterly useless now.... However a few people have suggested if the domain resolves to 12.158.80.10 [ http://sitefinder.verisign.com ] that those emails then should be forwarded to all the contacts listed here: http://www.verisign.com/corporate/ab...act/index.html

- Security: As you know you can enter userID and pwd into the browser to login directly at some sites. What happens now if you mistype the domain? ---- You end up including the whole string in the VeriSign logs...

Even if they say they don't log those things I just don't believe that!

wsjb78

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[D-man]

Great - from http://www.fool.com/news/mft/2003/mft03091906.htm?source=eptyholnk303100&logvisit=y& npu=y&bounce=y&bounce2=y

"This also means more spam in your inbox. Most Internet service providers (ISPs) can filter out email that is sent with false return addresses. Now, however, email that once showed invalid addresses will seem fine to the filters. The nonprofit Internet Software Consortium is already offering a patch to member ISPs that will counteract VeriSign's actions."

Fuckers

[Stud Money]

Just wait till one or two companies put in a lawsuit for cyber-squatting

Its gonna cost this greek fuck a lot of money for his bright idea in the long term

[icedemon]

http://www.alexa.com/site/ds/movers_shakers

They have moved from position 2,442 to 159. A 1,360% increase for the week.

[Stud Money]

Incidently, isnt cyber-squatting illegal in the US?

Something to do with the millenium act as i recall?

[iroc409]

wow... well, you have to give them credit, the idea is brilliant. but i do think it's overstepping their bounds.

if nothing else, the implications of domain name purchasing is INSANE. i mean seriously, they can EASILY log all that data, and start buying domain names. they'd make a fucking KILLING. damn.

props to them for their idea, but shit, i hope they get fucked

could be my isp is blocking them... lemme see if i can dig up the dns, i run everything off dhcp.

[iroc409]

i don't have the info right off hand... but if you guys want to try the local alltel dns, they are as follows: (haven't tried them... not on their network anymore)


166.102.165.13
166.102.165.11

[Morgan]

Originally posted by Stud Money
Just wait till one or two companies put in a lawsuit for cyber-squatting

Its gonna cost this greek fuck a lot of money for his bright idea in the long term

my thoughts exactly.... what happens when you type in:

microsoftt.com?

[TheSaint]

I was wondering when GFY would notice this, there has already been a few threads on the topic.

Relax. The people that make bind (dns) have already released a patch to block the stolen domain name space. As isps apply the patch, your server will once again get the non-existent error.

Verisign will most likely back off. If everyone applies the dbs patch it won't work for them anyway, and there will be so many lawsuits it might not be worth it.