Can a .com.au web site be registered under someone’s ABN without them knowing?

DryScissors on 03/10/2023 - 19:56

I’ve just been scammed by a website selling yeti water bottles and the website is registered to a vegan chocolate company based in Victoria. I used a unique email address to place an order and my credit card details have been passed on to another company (who used this email address in an invoice sent to me) and there have been two fraudulent transactions placed on my card today.

Is it possible for this chocolate company to not know anything about this? Or should I make it my life’s mission to expose them? I literally have all the energy in the world to ruin them if needed.

Internet

Comments

  • dtc on 03/10/2023 - 20:00
    +14

    Finding out someone’s ABN is like finding someone’s home address. It’s not secret and anyone can put it down on a form or something and you would have no idea if it’s used

  • SBOB on 03/10/2023 - 20:00
    +10

    Theres no notification to an abn holder when a .com.au domain name is registered, nor is there any burden of proof to owning that abn when requesting the domain.

    While a vegan chocolate company sounds like the kind of company that deserves some level of distrust, i dont think you can blame them for some random scammer using their abn

  • Muzeeb on 03/10/2023 - 20:06
    +2

    I'd love to see the website you purchased the yeti bottle from. Link?

  • [Deactivated] on 03/10/2023 - 20:15
    -2

    I used a unique email address to place an order and my credit card details have been passed on to another company

    I literally have all the energy in the world to ruin them if needed.

    You were suss about the order from the get go & yet now you want to go hell for leather for potentially misplaced retribution.

    gah!

    • mapax on 03/10/2023 - 20:21
      +2

      Not sure if using a unique email means they thought the store was suss. They might have simply used the +storename address.

      • [Deactivated] on 03/10/2023 - 20:50

        Are you the OP?

        • mapax on 03/10/2023 - 20:56

          Are you the vegan chocolatier?

          • [Deactivated] on 03/10/2023 - 21:10
            -1

            @mapax: No.

            What other conjecture can I make to add to this scintillating discussion about nothing?

        • DryScissors on 03/10/2023 - 21:22
          +3

          I use a separate email with every new account sign up. iCloud comes up with an automatic prompt.

  • deme on 03/10/2023 - 20:38

    Why don't you name them?

    • DryScissors on 03/10/2023 - 21:23
      -1

      I don’t want to name them if they’ve done nothing wrong.

      • 7ekn00 on 03/10/2023 - 21:36
        +4

        Good way of getting zero help here ;) Why even bother posting …

        • DryScissors on 03/10/2023 - 23:20
          +2

          I wanted to find out if it’s possible for someone to use someone else’s ABN to register a website. Excuse my ignorance, but I didn’t want to name and shame when someone here could do a simple WHOIS lookup, name them and potentially hurt their business unnecessarily.

          • Protractor on 03/10/2023 - 23:39
            +1

            @DryScissors: "Excuse my ignorance"
            OK,done.
            I'm feeling generous.Your ignorance is excused. Don't do it again.
            But yes, you should devote your life to futile pursuit of inconsequential and fleeting justice

      • SBOB on 03/10/2023 - 21:37
        +2

        Or be pointed out how poor the ecommerce web site you bought from was?

      • deme on 04/10/2023 - 12:38

        I’ve just been scammed by a website selling yeti water bottles and the website

        I don’t want to name them if they’ve done nothing wrong.

        What is wrong with you?

  • Nillionaire on 03/10/2023 - 22:53
    +1

    Did you purchase from au.yeti.com? If not, you likely purchased a unauthorized reseller and thus agreed to take the risk getting scammed. Good luck

    • 7ekn00 on 03/10/2023 - 23:28
      +2

      Nah, that was too expensive! The website that was offering 3 for $2 seemed far more legit :P

    • DryScissors on 03/10/2023 - 23:33

      Nah mate, BeeCeeF /s

    • AustriaBargain on 04/10/2023 - 11:10

      It was from for-reals-genuine-yeti.com.au/no-cap

  • Protractor on 03/10/2023 - 23:43

    BCF-ing …………done

    (like a dinner)

  • Broke-Ken on 04/10/2023 - 09:12
    +3

    Can a .com.au web site be registered under someone’s ABN without them knowing?

    Yes, there is a major flaw with the .au registration process where anyone can use any ABN details to register a domain and there are no checks, this was brought up long ago, as there was "coke-gate", as an example, people were registering .au domain names with Coca cola's ABN details.

    Unfortunately this issue has still not been resolved.

    But with that said, from your description, it sound more like they company in question does have a website, but unfortunately it's not been maintained and hackers have taken over it, whether they know it or not.

    • Clear on 04/10/2023 - 14:42
      +2

      Good luck getting auda to fix anything whois related to a domain. Their customer service is shockingly bad.

    • leiiv on 04/10/2023 - 15:06

      Don't they have a procedure in place that allows the rightful IP owner to take over any domain associated with the IP? So if the ABN owner can prove that they own the ABN, they can take over the domain registered by the unrelated party right?

      • Broke-Ken on 04/10/2023 - 16:38

        Note that IP and ABN are 2 separate issues.

        Don't they have a procedure in place that allows the rightful IP owner to take over any domain associated with the IP?

        Note really, it's a first in first served situation. having an IP will not give you the right to take a domain name from someone else who has already qualified and registered the domain before you. eg your company name is Leiiv, you have an IP for Leiiv. I'm just one of your reseller selling your product. I can register leiiv.com.au and say it's related to my business cause I sell a product with that branding. Once I have registered the domain name(with my own ABN), you can not claim the domain name for yourself.

        If the ABN owner can prove that they own the ABN, they can take over the domain registered by the unrelated party right?

        In this case, if I used your ABN to register a domain name, then yes, you can provide proof to the registrar and they can take it from me and hand over the domain "back" to you. But the reality is, how would you even know I used your ABN to register a domain, to go through this process? By the time people complain to you about this domain name/website that is listing your ABN details and you can act, I would have moved on by then.

        But what if I don't do anything suss, you would never know I registered a domain name under your ABN.

  • Waltervp on 04/10/2023 - 09:34
    +1

    I know of a local company whose Facebook page got highjacked and got used to sell excellent value merchandise that of course was never sent. Nothing to do with the company that owned the Facebook page, and the original page admins were made 'advertisers' on the page, replaced by a Chinese admin and could do nothing to shut the page down and Facebook did absolutely nothing despite being told about it by dozens of people over time. So yes, likely the vegan company is just another victim.

  • AustriaBargain on 04/10/2023 - 11:09
    +1

    .com.au ain't what it used to be.

    • Kyle-K on 06/10/2023 - 22:08

      It's always been marketing nothing has changed.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join