Domain Name Registration & MIA Web Developers
I think there’s a big disconnect between those of us who develop Web sites, and the general business population, particularly in regard to registering domain names. Why do I make this suggestion? I’ve encountered three businesses within the last three months who are having major issues dealing with MIA Web developers.
After a decade of business Web development, I suppose it’s no big surprise we’d deal with this sooner or later. Consider the scenario: Joe Business Owner meets Tammy Web Designer, who sells Joe on a great Web site. Tammy takes care of all the details and before Joe knows it he has his own Web site! Some time passes and eventually Tammy moves on to the next big thing, and Joe is left wondering how to update his Web site. Much time passes and eventually Joe meets Wendy Web Designer, and asks Wendy to help him update his Web site. Wendy checks the DNS and sure enough - Tammy’s name is on the domain name registration - not Joe’s. Contacting the host company does little, because as far as they’re concerned Tammy is the owner, not Joe. YIKES!
This type of scenario leaves business owners with huge headaches and sometimes expensive legal fees to regain control of these seemingly lost Web sites. To help avoid these types of situations, I’d like to suggest two things…
First, Web developers - STOP PUTTING YOUR CLIENTS’ DOMAINS IN YOUR NAMES! Let’s have some ethics here people! Technical contact is fine, but we should never be listed as administrative or billing contacts for our clients’ Web sites. Period.
Second, business owners - ask lots of questions of your Web developers and insist that all of your Web site registrations be placed in YOUR name. To check the registration of your existing Web site domains, check WHOIS. The same goes for hosting. Confirm that all hosting accounts are in the BUSINESS name and not the name of your Web developer. You may have the best relationship now with that Web developer, but if everything is in his name and he decides to bolt (for whatever reason), you’ll be left without access to your Web site and will little recourse to fight the issue.
Skhan said,
October 3, 2006 @ 3:54 pm
Few years back when I tried to install my OS (windows 98) for the first time, after wasting the whole day I and my best friend got seriously stucked and eventually we had to call a computer expert to help us installing this windows 98 thing !… cutting short this poor story and coming back to the point… after the computer expert had gone, I just moved around in my windows, I noticed that,Mr. Computer Expert registered the computer on his name ! … I was shocked to see that how could he ? but I was helpless because in order to remove his name from my computer I had to reinstall my windows and I was a novice to do that! That led me to think that he was an computer expert no doubt, but he didn’t have any ethics ! Then I thought why didn’t I take care of this resgistration thing ? That time I decided to learn the things myself and taking care of such things so that nobody could ever dare to do this with my “things” specially to my dearest computer! Wendy, I guess, I can understand your pain. After getting through my software engineering course I have heard/read so many cases like this of yours,where some developers have to pay for the silly and unethical attitudes of some unethical developers ! But at the same time the clients who have not enough knowledge about the computers are equally responsible. So in such a scenario the developers have got the double responsibilty !
This comment of mine goes for both software and web developers and for every aspect involved.
One last thing I want to mention is that I know only those developers will think about this who have got enough senses with alive thought process and the others will simply ignore ! Thats the actual pain….
Skhan said,
January 3, 2007 @ 4:55 am
I can’t think that it could even happen to me as well?
………… I can’t even type rite now ! When I got to realize what has happened to me and my dearest domain, I thought of one thing … Wendy’s blog section of domain issue!I’m headng towards my BCS final prject and I’m working on a dynamic baking recipe web site (thats my 4 yr final project and that is what I always wanted to do !) . So the very first thing I did was that I registered a domain for my website…(bakingdelight.com).. the name which came to mind after thinking a lot, the name had to go with my passion for baking!
… I happened to request “someone else” to do this domain registration for me ( I DON’T KNOW WHY DIDn’T I MANAGE ALL THIS FOR MYSELF !)…in short that someone supplied his name for the registrant information……..Here at my place my internet was dead and I couldn’t access my domain stuff to update the password information and etc for few days after registration of the domain. But today when I got there I was shocked to read that I wasn’t there at registrant’s place and I was unable to change the registrant name according to ICANN rules…and finally I came to know that this is no more an easy issue because that “someone” now has to transfer the domain to my name….the thing which was mine, I dreamed for it and someone else owns it and now I’ve to get my thing back , Its so STRANGE anf PAINFUL!
.. I don’t know what to type now….. I just want to request the whole community (involved in such issues) plz plz plz don’t do this to others!