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Domain name problem!

by Nightengale
18 replies
Hi Warriors,

I just discovered that one of my domain names was re-directed to one of those generic domain name placeholder pages.

I freaked out because I thought that I might have inadvertently let it expire. However, I try to be really careful about keeping up with my domain names. I just logged into GoDaddy.com and no, it hasn't expired. (Whew! I HAD kept up with it as I'd thought.)

But the nameservers had been changed. And not by me. How does that happen???? Who does that and why???

I've updated the nameserver info and it should take effect in the next few minutes. I think this has happened to me before. (I don't remember the details.)

How do I prevent this from happening again? I just don't get who would do that or why??? It's not even being redirected to another page to make sales for someone else.

Very weird.

Michelle
#domain #problem
  • Profile picture of the author Jill Carpenter
    Michelle, I would change passwords, and contact godaddy on the issue.

    They might be able to determine if your account was compromised.
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    • Profile picture of the author Nightengale
      I'd just changed my password with them in Dec. And I AM on hold with them right now. (Estimated wait time: 9 minutes. ???!!!)

      Arrrghh!!! This is a HUGE problem when I'm in launch and the domain name in question is the title of my new book! Anybody searching for it will think I'm a flake.

      Michelle
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      • Profile picture of the author Nightengale
        Thanks Brian.

        What I don't understand is HOW they did it. Don't they have to have my Go Daddy username and password??? I never give that to anyone! (Well, my former designer had it, but I'd already changed my password since I stopped using her.)

        Michelle
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  • Profile picture of the author Brian Lett
    Hi Michelle,

    You must have freaked out. I know that I would have. Nonetheless, in order to ensure that this does not happen again, make sure that your domain is "locked".

    Since you are with GoDaddy, to do this, you would simply hover over "Domains" on the top left of the page, and then go to "My Account ----> Domain Management". From there, simply click on your domain name, and then click the "Manage Domain" which appears directly below.

    Up top you should see a "Lock Icon" and which says "Locking" directly below. Click on that icon and choose to lock your domain.

    That should do it. Hopefully this helps

    Brian
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  • Profile picture of the author caseycase
    That is odd. Please update us on what happened. I don't really use GoDaddy anymore, but I do still have some domains registered there, so I would love to know what might have caused something like this. As Jill said, it could be as simple as getting hacked, but why would they send it to a placeholder page?
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  • Profile picture of the author allenjohn
    Should be just a matter of changing the nameservers back and then I would change your password (like Jill says). Also tell GD that your account may have been compromised and they can put some extra steps in... regards Allen
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  • Profile picture of the author dezchamps
    Is godaddy your host?
    I had something similar happen when moving to a new host. When setting up the new host I was at dnsa and that is how they set it up. I thought I could just change my nameservers at godaddy (dnsb) to the new hosting nameservers and it would all be good. Not so. The actual DNS zone at my hosting company had to be edited as well. It kept reverting back to the original DNS records.
    I uploaded an image to the old DNS that I didn't have at the new DNS so that I could tell which DNS the site was using, and finally narrowed down the problem.
    So it may be a hosting issue not a godaddy issue
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    • Profile picture of the author Nightengale
      Ok, just got off with GoDaddy.com.

      Unfortunately, the CSR wasn't very helpful. Nice, but not very helpful. All she could tell me was that nobody at Go Daddy had done it (I didn't think they had!), they have strong security and no, my account didn't appear to have been compromised.

      The only way someone can change my nameserver info is through Go Daddy and they have to have my user ID and password. I'd JUST changed it in Dec. Now I'm changing it again.

      The CSR suggested buying some sort of security service from them at $9.99/mo. Something about it scanning my sites (domains, I guess, since I don't host my sites with them). I don't think that will help. And why should I buy MORE from them when they can't help me with what I've already bought from them???

      And no, I don't host my sites with them. My sites are hosted with HostGator.com.

      I'm off to lock the domain (lock ALL of them) and change my password again before I'm done. But anyone with my user ID and password can go in and lock or unlock the domain, so how does that really help?

      Bottom line: Go Daddy was NO help!

      It just seems like more of a prank or just mischief than anything else since it was just re-directed to a generic domain placeholder page. I'm still confused as to who did it and WHY they did it. But what really bothers me is HOW they did it and the fact that GoDaddy.com can't tell me or help me with it.

      Michelle
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  • Profile picture of the author Brian Lett
    Hi Michelle,

    Sorry that GoDaddy wasn't very helpful. I think you are on the right track though by changing your login information and locking your domain.

    Brian
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    • Profile picture of the author PassiveIncomeGuru
      Hi Michelle,

      I'm sorry Godaddy wasn't more helpful to you. I will say that I've been with them for about 4 years now, having owned more than 100 domains over the course of that time. I have always locked my domains and I've never experienced them being redirected. I do also change my password and pin ever few months, and never to something that I've used before or that's easy to figure out.

      A couple of suggestions, and I don't know if they'll help but trying them certainly shouldn't hurt anything. If you have the money, I'd suggest purchasing private registration (if they'll let you on the older domains and definitely on any new domains you purchase). Private registration keeps others from seeing critical info such as your personal details. Sometimes people can use this to hack their way into your life without you knowing it.

      Also, check your computer to make sure you're not playing host to any kind of spyware. Sometimes this can be an issue without us knowing it as well, and hackers can follow your keystrokes to figure out what sites you visit often and how you log into them.

      If you need to do business of a sensitive nature online (such as check your Paypal account or purchasing something), I suggest using Firefox and the Private Browsing feature. That way your browser won't save any cookies or history, and no kind of scripts or anything will be able to download themselves to your system while you're shopping or checking a bank account.

      I certainly hope that doesn't happen again, and let us know if any of the suggestions given seem to work!
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      • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
        Is your eMail address on the account correct? Do you have notifications turned on?

        I always receive a notification whenever I change my name servers on any of my domains. This is true for whatever registrar I use.

        So, if you have notifications on and your eMail address is correct, are you sure you had the nameservers set in the first place? Did you have it with another registrar before GoDaddy? Was the placeholder page one of GoDaddy's?
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        • Profile picture of the author Nightengale
          Dan,

          Good questions.

          I have notifications turned on and I've been getting notifications sent to my e-mail as I've been changing all of this stuff.

          The DNS info may not have been correct for all of the domains since I only actually use a few of them. Most of them I just bought so no one else would get them. Maybe nobody hacked anything. Maybe it was just never set to the correct DNS info in the first place.

          Except that the particular domain I'm talking about I DO use and had re-directed to one of my sites, so I know the DNS was correct at one time. I'm wondering if it just defaulted back to a placeholder page for whatever strange reason?

          That makes more sense. But I still have no idea why it would default back in the first place.

          Very weird.

          Michelle

          Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert View Post

          Is your eMail address on the account correct? Do you have notifications turned on?

          I always receive a notification whenever I change my name servers on any of my domains. This is true for whatever registrar I use.

          So, if you have notifications on and your eMail address is correct, are you sure you had the nameservers set in the first place? Did you have it with another registrar before GoDaddy? Was the placeholder page one of GoDaddy's?
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      • Profile picture of the author Nightengale
        I've never done private registration, but I DID change my address to a PO box.

        I've updated the DNS info for all of my domains and changed my GoDaddy.com password. I think I've locked all of the domains now, but I need to go back in and double-check as soon as the new password takes effect. (It takes several minutes.)

        About public vs. private registration... That's kind of how I was thinking someone might have been able to change the DNS (that is, if they had access to all of my WhoIs info). But I'm not at all techie and don't know how that might be possible. According to GoDaddy.com, though, they would have had to have access to my GoDaddy.com account (with my GoDaddy.com user ID and password).

        I rarely access public computers. I'm always on my laptop at home. I have wireless Internet service, but it's secured. No one around me can access my wireless network without the password.

        So I'm still not sure what happened, bu it's fixed. For now....

        Michelle
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  • Profile picture of the author BlondieWrites
    That's really strange. I've used GoDaddy for about ten years and never had such an issue.

    You said you changed your passwords, so I would do as other suggested and do the lock on each domain if you haven't already done that. Then I would try talking to someone else at GoDaddy that might be able to help you more with why or how this happened. Nameservers don't just change themselves, someone had to do it.

    If the domain was about to expire and you didn't renew it on time, then it could change the nameservers but it would be GoDaddy doing it and they should be able to tell you that was the reason. If it wasn't because of the renew time, then someone had to do it.

    If this happens again after you have the domains locked and the password changed, I would most certainly keep talking to GoDaddy until someone there gives you an answer. As said, nameservers don't just change themselves.

    And please do keep us informed of what you might learn about why they changed.



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    • Profile picture of the author Nightengale
      Ok, now I'm just plain ANGRY!

      I use Google Apps for my e-mail and the MX records in my GoDaddy account are set accordingly.

      Several weeks ago, the information in my GoDaddy account was changed out of the blue and I couldn't access my e-mail by typing in http://webmail.mydomain.com. I discovered the MX records in GoDaddy had been changed and I spent at least 2-3 hours figuring out the problem and then trying to change it. (The first time didn't take.)

      I never said anything to anyone or complained about it to GoDaddy.com. I never even mentioned it here on the WF.

      Now, after my earlier problems and updates regarding my domains this morning, I'm having the same problem accessing my email!!!! Arrrgggh! When I type in http://webmail.mydomain.com, it redirects to my webmail with HostGator.com, which is where my sites are hosted. But since my e-mail is re-directed to a Google Apps (GMail) account, my e-mail isn't there!

      I just logged back into GoDaddy.com and all of the MX record info is just GONE. Thank goodness I had the foresight to copy/paste all of the MX record info this morning just in case (since I had this trouble a few weeks ago). I just can't see where to update it again.

      Now I'm on hold with GoDaddy.com. Again.

      Michelle
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  • Profile picture of the author imfusa
    I can't believe that this could happen on a godaddy user. I have had 15 domain with them for 2 3- years, I have sold most of them, and bought other domains, but in 3 years i did not have any problems with them.
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    • Profile picture of the author Nightengale
      Just got off of the phone with GoDaddy. Apparently, when I changed the DNS info, that also changed the MX records. And now that the DNS info is with HostGator, I had to call HostGator to get them to update the MX records with my Google Apps info.

      That makes sense...I guess.

      The tech at HostGator was kind enough to do it for me instead of just telling me how to do it myself. But he said it will take 2-8 hours to propagate. ?????

      Grrrr!

      Oh well, I CAN access my e-mail by typing in https://mail.google.com/a/mydomain.com. I've bookmarked it too.

      So I'm all right...I guess. I still don't know how the DNS info for the one domain name got changed in the first place, creating all of this havoc....

      Michelle
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  • Profile picture of the author Chanda
    Banned
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  • Profile picture of the author daddykool
    Bit weird but has happened before, most of the current registrars have a little bit of small print and / or condition to "update" the registratants NS if the domain falls into the renew / grace / whatever name they can make up for it period, which basically puts their ads / links on the holding page, maybe and I say maybe your name slipped into this, even by a day and the automated systems just then default to a holding page (owned by the registrar) that has generic ads or links on it, most of the time the page , which is very similar to when say a web hosting account gets a "suspension" page put up on a late paid account, are automated and will be instantly replaced on domain name update, that said I have seen numerous DN's that are on a holding page, that have slipped into this condition, that should not be!

    Best thing is to update your password/s to AES level ones and also to ensure it will not happen ever again, regardless of the registrar, is to setup all your DN renewals as reminders on Google Cal as events so it emails / texts you every day / week and also grab the free version of web monitor, which will inform you of any NS / MX / Page updates instantly :-)

    Hope that helps
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