Dnforum.com - Possible User Verification Process Changes

[MAllie]

Adam,
it's also very important that u share that info with the following:
FBI
KGB
Al Fatah
Mossad
M16 British Secret Intelligence Service

Oh wait, the minute u collect it the FBI will demand u hand it to them.

And by the way, did u see that black van with tinted windows outside of your house?

That's amusing but totally illogical, not to say paranoid.

---------- Post added at 03:54 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:51 PM ----------

Because domains are high value items that you can transfer over the internet, domaining is the most popular industry for hackers and scammers.

Isn't that the whole point?

[Maxwell]

I think because this is a paid forum there are less problems than other places.

Precisely. A valid paypal account and/or credit card must have been possessed in order for payment for membership to be processed. If a prospective user could not furnish either, then they are not a member of this forum. Plain and simple.

Now, a scammer can easily get around these, but if it costs them money to execute their scam attempt, that's another cost against their potential gains.

If it were a free forum, on the other hand, there is less of a cost of doing business, and thus, that forum is more likely to be populated by scammers.

I can think of a few ways in which verification could be effectively done while gaining maximum results.

Before I go suggesting anything, Adam, what outcome are you expecting from an improved verification system?

I.e. You want information for an investigation in the case of a fraudulent transaction?

You want to ensure only one account per person?

[ecomindia]

How the address verification is going to be done for Non-US / Non-Canada customers... just curious.. or just too dumb?

[Dale Hubbard]

Adam, you and I discussed this a few years ago. Your memory may have been jogged when I posted recently that the DNF verified forum link was dead. I personally think that a well-thought-out system would be invaluable here. I hope people contribute to this thread by giving their opinions as to what would be viable but non-intrusive. I'm going to PM you and remind you of the discussions we had before.

[CamMK27]

I prefer not to give out my private information. I don't think it is a good idea that people can't post if they have not verified the info. You will probably lose more people faster. If people are worried about scammers then use Escrow.com services to avoid being scammed for a transaction.

[Makis77]

I like the idea of phone verification but stron fgly disagree with address verification for same reasons that erdnic posted even though domain whois details are enough for anyone that want to try something weird.

[DomainMagnate]

I don't really mind, but don't think its a good thing either. Let me explain.
Suppose someone wants to run a scam on dnf and sell some stolen domains. If before to get some reputation and trust here he'd have to be a member for a while, make some successful transactions and get itraders, now all he needs is to use some throwaway address and phone number - which is fairly easy to get. Other members will see the DNF Verified sign and will not be as alert and cautious as they should when dealing with new and suspicious members. So this might just have the opposite effect.
I think the system is working great the way it is as we have many great members who protect each other and the industry and scammers are caught fast.

[Adam Dicker]

I would say dnforum is one of the safest places to buy and sell domains online.

It is rare, almost never, that an account is hijacked because I have security software that alerts me if someone logs in from another country or ip on an account.
I am also notified when people play itrader games with two accounts from the same ip leaving feedback for themselves, this happens once in a while and I shut down both accounts.

Some fraud is done by people buying paypal accounts, buying membsrhips with those accounts and selling through that fake id, this is what we need to put an end to.

For some reason, members buy from new members with zero or low itrader ratings and this is where you tend to have the most problems. This one boggles my mind.

-=DCG=-

[MAllie]

How the address verification is going to be done for Non-US / Non-Canada customers

I live in Ireland. I seem to recall the system was pretty much the same as for a buyer on sedo, providing serious ID as to my home address and so on. I think I had to fax it.

---------- Post added at 11:52 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:48 AM ----------

If before to get some reputation and trust here he'd have to be a member for a while, make some successful transactions and get itraders, now all he needs is to use some throwaway address and phone number - which is fairly easy to get . . . I think the system is working great the way it is as we have many great members who protect each other and the industry and scammers are caught fast.

If everyone were verified, you'd still need to exercise the normal caution you would in any transaction, except that the bar would be raised for scammers. I don't automatically accept that everyone who seems genuine is, but at least I have some indication that he has a fair chance of being genuine.

[erdinc]

Phone verification is good if you want to make it difficult for repeat offenders to come back over and over again. If somebody is selling a stolen 2000 USD domain for 700 USD, they might indeed open a new dnforum account just for that. However I don't know if there are scammers who keep coming back.

DomainMagnate's concern makes sense. If there is phone verification I think it should be obligatory if you want to open a thread in the for sale section and there should be no verified seal for any user because everybody would be verified. (I changed my mind on that. Earlier I was suggesting a verified seal but it seems like a bad idea now).

Generally speaking, the areas that need improving here at dnforum are different than other forums. If you have some free time in your hands I can think of lots of other things that could be improved regarding functionality, usability and features. I won't go into detail here as I don't want to mess up this topic.

[ksinclair]

I support verification. Money is involved here; sometimes for large amounts.
People can still have an anonymous id in the threads, so every need is met.

Adam, will the collecting of verfiication info give you any liability? That you are
giving some kind of implied stamp of approval for members? You need a strong
disclaimer written by a lawyer if you collect verification info, just to protect dnf.

Kevin

[URLtrader]

Charge $1 per year to a Credit/Debit Card for the right to post. That would verify and update address on yearly basis (and put some dough in your pocket) .

[ksinclair]

Charge $1 per year to a Credit/Debit Card for the right to post. That would verify and update address on yearly basis (and put some dough in your pocket) .

To Post, OR PM.

I would support this for sure.

[URLtrader]

You forgot WikiLeaks ?

Adam,
it's also very important that u share that info with the following:
FBI
KGB
Al Fatah
Mossad
M16 British Secret Intelligence Service

Oh wait, the minute u collect it the FBI will demand u hand it to them.

And by the way, did u see that black van with tinted windows outside of your house?

[1john2004]

What are the problems with the way things are now?
Just always use sedo escrow with members you don't know.


I don't think I will feel any better buying stolen domain from "DNF verified" member

[tristanperry]

It won't prevent hacked accounts, but some sort of verification process would be useful. My phone number and address are all on public WHOIS anyway so I don't mind if it is verification via these two.