Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Domain Names : Recovering a domain

[Teh_Winnar]

I have a client with a domain, is no longer accessible. The whois information is not up to date. The registered name shown is someone who no longer is at the company and there is no way of contacting them.

The email address is incorrect, and goes to a domain that no longer accepts email (company that was bought out)

The domain host has basically told us the only way to recover the domain is to have the person who the domain is registered (Not contactable) fax in a copy of their drivers license. Or to activate the email account registered (Also not possible)

What other methods do I have to try and recover this domain? The host claims that everything has to be done in relation to the name or email which are 100% dead ends. The domain is still registered for another 3 years.

[Techno]

Can you contact the owner of the contact email address domain?

[stub]

Seems like your client is out of luck. The Registrar won't do anything without being contacted by the registrant. You could maybe report the domain for false whois. Sometimes the registrar will delete the domain and sometimes they simply deactivate it. You might ask the registrar what they do about reported false whois before actually reporting it. But of course then the domain would not then resolve for <1yr-3yrs. The company could engage a Private Detective to locate the old registrant. If you have access to the hosting you could simply place a php redirect on the hosting to someplace else.

[Teh_Winnar]

@Techno
We've tried that route but the company was bought out and doesn't actually exist anymore.

@stub
The issue is that the company that houses their name servers is turning them off and we have no way of accessing the domain to change them. So all of their records are going to stop working.

Thanks though, we are trying some other avenues.

[stub]

As I said. Your client is out of luck, if he doesn't have access to the Registrar or Host.

I'd be interested in hearing what other avenues you are trying?