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Namecheap just seized and disabled all my domains

Namecheap just seized and disabled all my domains

sashk

Comments (182)

  • opengrass
    Namecheap gave my account to an unverified third partyhttps://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49028037Namecheap banned a few domain names purely based on an ambiguous tweet that got 6 likeshttps://x.com/Namecheap/status/1489485337885921284Namecheap suspended Imgur in 2013 for 1 CSAM image out of millionshttps://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5276648Namecheap snipes your domainshttps://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28732510
  • teddyh
    Like I have said previously¹ about choosing a registrar: If you have regular backups, and if some downtime is not really a problem, it might be fine to use web site hosting, e-mail (and in extreme cases even DNS hosting), from some fly-by-night el cheapo provider. But your domain name registrar? Pick them carefully, don’t skimp, and make sure they have good support. Because when things go pear-shaped, you really want to be able to actually talk to someone to change your web server or e-mail DNS records (or even DNS servers) to somewhere else.Big registrars can’t afford any support costs since they prefer to squeeze the price down as far as possible, and therefore they prefer to simply lose or outright drop any customer in case of any and all problems. Conversely, small registrars may charge more, but have better (i.e. actually existing, and sometimes even dedicated and personal) support for when things go wrong, and have a vested interest in keeping you as a customer.A small registrar might also be so small as to know you personally, which will help monumentally against any social engineering attacks.Full disclosure: I work at such a registrar, but you’re probably not in our target market.1. <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32095499>
  • sourcecodeplz
    namecheap purchased by private equity CVC in 2025 for $1.5Bso costs need to go down (-human support + ai automation)and prices go up (they increased i think .com 3 times this year alone)
  • nikolay
    Namecheap is the worst! Our CTO left and our account was tied to his phone. Our CEO didn't want to talk to him, so, over chat, I made them remove the phone 2FA. They didn't authenticate me in any way - only gave them a good story and our username. I know people trash talk GoDaddy, but I've been the most happiest with them - they have support, if you have lots of domains, they assign to your an account exec that can do stuff for you. I've dealt with literally all registrars as I own thousands of domains. Nobody else comes close to GoDaddy - they have APIs, they have support, they listen. Plus, they are big and you can sue them - try suing company abroad if they mess up!As far as I recall, Namecheap was based in Eastern Europe - as an Eastern European, I can tell you that I would never put anything important in an Eastern European company! Their new Spaceship offshoot is lipstick on a pig, literally.Cloudflare is also not a good choice - you have no support! Porkbun may seem cool, but I'm not impressed as they lack some basic features such as profiles, let's say.
  • ericholscher
    Yea they did something like this with us. Fully turned off our business domain because we didn’t reply to a phishing email in 48 hours. We migrated out the next day once we got it resolved. It took over 6 hours from when we noticed the issue and responded until they turned it back on. Absolutely horrible service.
  • drpixie
    And NEVER use an email address on some domain/service for administration of that domain/service.
  • amelius
    Well, if a deal sounds too cheap to be true ...
  • chung8123
    Out of curiosity where are people going for their domains. I have a GoDaddy because changing seems like a task that would be more annoying than it is worth and that is even if you can find a place that is better.
  • syntex
    I had a similar experience with Namecheap. Their bot crawled my website while it was still under construction and apparently reported it to some security databases, causing my domain to be flagged as suspicious.Since then, my domain's reputation has been affected, and I often get security warnings when trying to access my own website through my company's VPN.Namecheap simply informed me that it had been a mistake, but the damage was already done, and the issue still persists.
  • throw-the-towel
    There's a reason it's called Namecheap not Namesafe.
  • r_lee
    this is one of the worst trends in modern time - "AML" and "KYC" being shoved into everything, requiring you to attach your own identity into everything and send your ID/passport to vendors left and right, no right to privacy at all.
  • nairboon
    Sounds like Namecheap. They took one of my domains (held for many years) and try to sell it back to me for thousands because now it's a valuable domain.
  • sirnicolaz
    This gave me the final kick to finally move away from Namecheap
  • _hmj
    Between 2014 and 2018, Namecheap was a solid provider, and my experiences back then were consistently positive.
  • CharlesW
    Namecheap cannot be trusted. I purchased a domain for a "normal" price (and yes, I have receipts). Shortly after they realized they fucked up, voided the purchase, and made it a $1,500 premium domain. Obviously, my recommendation is to avoid Namecheap.
  • blinding-streak
    What are good alternatives to namecheap?
  • bityard
    Friends don't let friends use namecheap.
  • jojobas
    Same here, one scam-like email to just one of the connected addresses (renewals go everywhere), 1 week to comply, domains updated Friday night, "risk and compliance" who are supposed to react in 12-24 are still thinking about it.Account of 14 years, always paid from the cards in the same name. Can't think of any valid reason to do this, hope they lose most of their customers and go bankrupt.
  • writtenone
  • andrewstuart
    I’ve found really great but quite unique .com domain names available on name cheap then mysteriously gone registered to name cheap within hours, available for purchase at thousands.Always strenuously denied by the name cheap CEO “we do not front run domain names!”.I’d never do a domain name check there again.
  • assimpleaspossi
    This is an anonymous post on Reddit.I repeat. This was on Reddit. Consider what credibility there might be.
  • pmkary
    I'm an Iranian---which is something you have no choice in, you just turn 4~5 and understand enough language that they tell you that you are an Iranian. And well out of believing namecheap is a good company (since I had my DNS there) I purchased my domain from them. Then one day these fuckers banned my domain, and my access to the dashboard without any warnings or headsup, didn't even allow me to move my domain to somewhere else, and those vultures from GoDaddy bought it in the auction and have put it for 3500€... Horrible people
  • Benard-dev
    Does this mean we should not always entrust our domains with only one registrar?
  • Terr_
    There Oughta Be a Law.OK, but seriously, if my domain name vanishes all the things I won't be able to log into are insane. Over the last thirty years, many many more "little people" have come to rely a lot more heavily (and immediately) on their domains working.
  • m3047
    They requested presentation of a phone number and ID, so this sounds like info harvesting (for laundering / resale).
  • charcircuit
    It shouldn't even be possible to seize a domain in the first place. Too often it ends up hurting legitimate actors.
  • convolvatron
    this is going to be an unpopular opinion, but this was the inevitable result of changing a function with trivial cost and broad social utility (name registration) from a public service to a commercial one. at the time we heard a lot of standard arguments about the innovation and competition that only a market based solution could bring. its really not a surprise that this is the kind of innovation that resulted.
  • farlight
    If you still did business with them after this, it's your own fault and you deserve everything they're doing to you:https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30504812(Before reacting to the headline, please read at least some of the discussion.)