[ic] Verisign -- please vote with your feet!

Duane Hinkley duane at downhomewebdesign.com
Sun Sep 28 12:56:30 EDT 2003



Mike Heins wrote:

> Dear Interchange Users,
>
> In the nearly seven years this list has existed, I have not often
> used it as a soapbox. I guess I am now.
>
> I have stopped using all Verisign products, period.
>
> * Where I once had (either myself or with clients) a hundred or more
>   domains registered with them, now I have zero. Any time I find someone
>   registered at Verisign, I immediately suggest a move to another
>   registrar, and I donate my time to help them do it at my
>   cost.
>
> * I used Thawte since I first heard about them, approximately 1997,
>   partly because they were not Verisign. When they were bought by
>   Verisign, I felt they kept some of their integrity, so I kept using
>   them. At this point, though, I have switched to Comodo and will no
>   longer renew certificates with Thawte, and will no longer generate a
>   CSR for them. And certainly not for the Verisign brand itself.
>
> * I wrote a Signio client for Interchange, which eventually became the
>   PayFlowPro module. I regret that, and I never recommend PayFlowPro.
>
> Many of you may realize I have despised them for years; but they have
> now gone far beyond the bounds of civilized behavior.
>
> If I find anything else which is owned by Verisign, I will stop using
> it. I will no longer work on any part of Interchange which supports a
> Verisign product. Though I wouldn't be so insensitive as to do it
> unilaterally, I will suggest that we remove the Interchange Signio/PayFlowPro
> module from Interchange, and move it to a separate site or a contrib
> directory.
>
> Verisign obviously believes they are above the law and they believe they
> don't need to conduct themselves with respect toward other people. They
> routinely abuse trust by sending promotional email to people who have
> specifically requested not to receive it.
>
> And now the ultimate abuse of trust -- they hijack the Internet; the
> NXDOMAIN DNS response existed for a reason, and now you won't get it
> when you request a non-existent .net or .com domain.
>
> I no longer consider them trustworthy to sign HTTPS certificates, and
> have revoked all of their root certs in my browser. I may allow some
> stores using their certs to sell to me, but I will have to OK the
> certificate every time it is presented and I will send them feedback
> that I don't appreciate them supporting pirates.
>
> Please don't help Verisign run roughshod over everyone in the
> world. Please stop using Verisign products.
>
> Best Regards,
> Mike Heins
> _______________________________________________
> interchange-users mailing list
> interchange-users at icdevgroup.org
> http://www.icdevgroup.org/mailman/listinfo/interchange-users

I cringe when ever a client tells me they've registered their domain through
Network Solutions.  They are always the hardest to work with when it comes to
domain changes and transfers.  On one occasion, they even decieved me (the
expert) with their mis-leading web pages.  They tricked me into signing a client
up for one of their extra services when I selected the button that appeared to be
the confirmation button.  I found out latter the button I should have sellected,
was grayed out and just a couple shades of gray different that the background.

I've also had trouble with their Verisign PayFlow products.  I had one client
that recieved a email of a pending change that never happened.  He had to pay me
to make changes that he didn't need.  A few months latter PayFlow stopped working
on his site.  After calling their support, I found they had made a change to the
service.  Of course it wasn't the change they said they'd make months earlier and
they never notified him this time.  What a bunch of Bozos.  I now recomend
Authorize.net to all my clients.

Most my clients are small businesses with a low volume.  So, I use the cheaper
chained certificates.  I bought two through Comodo but had so much trouble with
the second one that I switched to FreeSSL.com  It took me three weeks to get a
certificate from Comodo when none of their automated emails would reach me.  They
finally delivered when I threatened to reverse the charge on my credit card.

I just did my first certificate with FreeSSL.com yesterday.  I completed the
complete order, confirmation and had my certificate in under an hour.  They came
highly recomended from another news group.


Sincerely,

Duane Hinkley
Down Home Web Design, Inc.
(208) 424-0572 Fax(208) 587-0738

duane at downhomewebdesign.com
www.downhomewebdesign.com




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