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GoDaddy

GoDaddy is a privately owned, Internet-based company that provides a variety of services including domain name registration, web hosting and e-business software sales. The company, which is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, was founded by Bob Parsons. Parsons previously owned a financial services software company, which he sold in the mid-1990s upon retirement. He came out of retirement in 1997 to form Jomax Technologies, the predecessor to GoDaddy.

Since it’s inception, GoDaddy has risen to become the largest domain registrar in the world, with tens of million of domains registered to its clients. The company ranks as the world’s largest ICANN-accredited registrar; it’s approximately four times larger than its nearest competition. Recent corporate acquisitions include Outright, Locu, Afternic, and Media Temple.

GoDaddy has redefined Internet hosting services, and it has been the recipient of numerous industry awards and accolades. Among these awards are the 2001 Arizona BBB award for Business Ethics and the 2011 SC Magazine award for Best Security Team. In 2011, it ranked number four in the Phoenix Business Magazine list of “Best Places to Work in the Valley” and it made the 2012 Forbes list of “Best 100 Companies to Work For.”

Known for its sometimes controversial commercials and interesting spokespersons, GoDaddy also sponsors a number of charitable causes in support of domestic violence and child abuse awareness, and sports events, including NASCAR and the Super Bowl. In 2013, the company shifted its advertising strategy to focus more on small to medium sized business owners (SMB). Reflecting this change, its commercials and advertising materials shifted from “sexy” to smart.

GoDaddy Making You Sign in to See What You Renewed (Updated)

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This morning, I noticed something different in a domain name renewal email from GoDaddy. Instead of telling me exactly what domain names I renewed in the renewal receipt email, it simply said “.COM Domain Renewal” along with the term and price. You can see what this looks like below:

This is either a change that was made today or a data retrieval error.

Beware of GoDaddy Phishing Email that May Target Squadhelp WLM Sellers

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BrandLabs shared a warning post on Twitter this afternoon. While the email appears to be targeting Squadhelp sellers who utilize their White Label Marketplace (WLM), it is something anyone should be wary about:

According to the person who posted the warning, the email address that received this phishing email is used exclusively within his WLM website. Further, in order to see the email address, someone would have to click the contact us link. I am not sure if this means the person behind the phishing effort clicked the contact button or has an automated way to do it.

Live Chat with Paul Nicks to Discuss GoDaddy ENS Integration

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Yesterday, GoDaddy announced a new partnership with Ethereum Name Service (ENS) to offer customers a way to connect a domain name to an ENS crypto wallet. For those looking for additional details – or for those who have questions about the partnership and impacts at GoDaddy – Paul Nicks will be hosting a live chat on Twitter/X Spaces to discuss this further:

GoDaddy DTVS Should Override Fast Transfer

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I keep my portfolio of domain names at GoDaddy, and I have DTVS security enabled on my account. Domain Sherpa wrote about DTVS, but in short, when I push a domain name to another GoDaddy account or someone starts a transfer of my domain name to another domain registrar, I have to approve the change via phone call.

With Afternic’s Fast Transfer service enabled, GoDaddy’s DTVS is overridden. When someone buys a Fast Transfer-authorized domain name through the Afternic network, the domain name is automatically pushed or transferred without the DTVS phone call since the Fast Transfer was previously authorized by the seller.

In light of the ongoing issue with the Fast Transfer authorization emails, I think GoDaddy should allow customers with DTVS to have that override Fast Transfer approval.

GoDaddy Comments on Unauthorized Listing Attempts

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I wrote about the fraudulent domain name sales listing attempts at Afternic that have triggered Fast Transfer authorization emails to be sent to GoDaddy customers over the past few days. This isn’t a new issue, but it seems to be more widespread now than it was previously.

I reached out to GoDaddy seeking comment about this, and a company representative responded to me today with a comment:

Watch Out for Fraudulent Afternic Listing Emails

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Last Summer, I wrote an article urging caution to domain investors who might be tempted to blindly approve “Authorize your domain listings” emails from Afternic. If someone fraudulently lists your domain name for sale on Afternic and you click the approval link, it could get listed in someone else’s account without your approval. This could cause major problems down the road.

Andrew Allemann mentioned that he received a fast transfer opt-in email for a domain name he wasn’t selling. I also received an email for MLR.com that I reported to Afternic immediately. Their system had it removed by the time an account manager had a look.

Other domain investors mentioned receiving multiple approval emails:

I believe a third party – or multiple third parties – is creating faulty listings on Afternic en masse. I don’t know what the objective is, but I know the potential damage this could cause if an investor accidentally approves a listing they did not authorize.

If you receive one or more of these emails, be wary. They come from Afternic, but if the emails weren’t sent because you added domain names to your account, someone else might have added them for sale in their account. By clicking the email, you are authorizing a fast transfer.

I believe I was told one work around is to add domain names to your account that you own but aren’t selling and put them as “Not Listed” for sale. People should not have to do a workaround to prevent fraudulent listings, but it was something I was told a while back.

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This morning, I noticed something different in a domain name renewal email from GoDaddy. Instead of telling me exactly what domain names I renewed...