What is Spoofing…
And Why It Threatens Everything You Do Online!
The number one reason why businesses are online is… to grow their business. And in today’s world of social networks and instant access, a big part of that is through building a good name for yourself.
We’re talking about your online reputation. And for your business to flourish, it MUST be grounded on building trust.
So what is spoofing?
And more importantly, how is this issue critically dangerous for your online presence?
Spoofing is the process where someone with malicious intent disguises their emails, messages or websites to make them look as if they are your email or website. In other words, malicious content is distributed as if it is coming from you.
With my extensive professional background working on business computer networks, corporate websites and Email servers I have seen this many times. It is, unfortunately, all too common.
You are probably familiar with the words “SPAM” or “SPAMMING,” and perhaps the more obscure term called “Phishing” [pronounced "fish-ing"]. What you may not know is that some unscrupulous people (and businesses) may be using other email names that are directly associated with your website’s dot.com name in their malicious emails.
The problem, as you can well imagine, is when the recipient believes that these intrusive messages (i.e. garbage or “crap”) is coming from you!
What’s in a Web Hosting Company
Well, everything. Did you know that it is possible that the person sending these emails might have a web hosting account with the same web hosting company as you.
It happens. More than you can imagine.
Now, there is only one way to fix this kind of problem. And that is by working with your web hosting company that the bogus emails are being sent from. Here’s what you need to do, and say:
- Contact your hosting provider.
- Request that ‘spoofing filters” on your account get setup or upgraded.
- Mention to them the problem your having.
If your web hosting company claims that they cannot help you, contact us for the next steps to take. Many times certain “fly by night” or “inexpensive” hosting companies act as if there is nothing they can do.
This is just plain bull… You know what I mean.
For legal reasons (our attorney warned us against making too strong claims here), we can’t publish what to say if they try to stonewall you. But if your hosting company resists your attempts to protect your account, send us an email and we’ll continue the conversation “offline.”
Now, in some instances they may tell you to set those filters up yourself. If that happens, then all I can tell you is that you should try your best to follow their directions. Wait a few days and see if that helps your situation at all.
If your web hosting company continues to resist your efforts to protect your good name, then the final step is to choose another hosting company. If that describes your situation, here’s what you’ll need to ask them:
- Do they have spoofing filters in place
- Does you account have access to these filters
- Are you able to adjust the settings of these filters on the “back end.
- What is their procedure to protect your account if you become a victim of spoofing.
Any company worth dealing with can answer these questions. If they try to dismiss your concerns… well, to me that’s a red flag.
Look, the bottom line is this: it’s your business and reputation at stake here. Whether you’ve been victimized or not, this is an important issue that you need to safeguard.
Next Steps…
Any questions? Comments? Did we hit a nerve?
Drop us a line by leaving a comment. We will reply (here, and by email if you’d like) as soon as we’re able. And if there’s a topic you want us to discuss, let us know.
To receive monthly emails with summaries of all our latest content, sign up for our “Monthly Web Tips” above. Does that sound fair enough to you?
To discover how our web marketing firm can help you with your online presence, traffic, leads and sales, kindly follow the link. You can also review our web marketing services to better understand how we work with clients just like you.
What's In a (Web) Name? Avoid These Critical Mistakes
I have to tell you right up front, that I’m a little ticked off. No, it’s not that a bunch of folks didn’t register IN ADVANCE for the live seminar. That was partly my fault. I failed to mention that there was no registration at the door.
As my buddy Mark likes to say, there’s no failure. Only feedback.
No, what really gets me going is running into folks, or hearing from people, who have been taken advantage of. Their websites, and therefore their business identity or entity held hostage if you will.
Not to mention wasted dollars. Wasted marketing opportunities.
Gone.
Lost forever, all because you decided to use a web developer who is only capable of building “custom” (think expensive, clunky, buggy and therefore totally useless today online) websites that YOU cannot modify, fix, change or add new content to.
What’s the point of that??
Not to mention that when you do need to change or modify something on your site (flexibility in business is an absolute MUST) they have to do it for you… for a price, of course!
But wait, it gets even worse for you than that. You have to understand that success in business today involves success online. Period. And that to thrive today, in this economy, it’s not about big versus small.
It’s about fast versus slow. Adapt or die. Ok, don’t believe me. Then read this…
“You see, it’s not enough to say, ‘Yes, that’s a good idea; we’re doing that’ or ‘Well, we did earn net profits of X.’ The question is When? When are you doing that? When did you earn those profits – this quarter or this year? And how much more is it than last quarter or last year?…
Time is one of the single biggest constraints that we all have to face. And given the core purpose of a business, to make money, the question is not ‘How can we make more money?’ It is ‘How can we make more money, faster?’”
- Brad Fallon, “The Net Effect” Vol. 1, Issue 1 p. 38 – 39.
Period. End of discussion.
Make no mistake about it. While you’re waiting in limbo for a phone call or email letting you know your site is ready, your competitor is already online, owning more and more of the internet. All while you wait for somebody to just make your site the way you’d like it.
Or the way it should be to actually make you money.
Yes, it really is that simple. As I ask questions like “are you happy with your site” or “is your site bringing in more business” or whatever I’m hitting a raw nerve.
And folks are just opening up about how badly they’ve been screwed. And, more often than not, are still getting screwed.
The first time I tried to get a website, I hired a “friend” of mine, paid him upfront, and then waited more than 7 months for… nothing.
That’s right. Months would go by with no word. Emails unanswered. Phone tag. Finally a deadline (3 months after the check cleared) that came… and went.
Nice, huh?
When he finally called to tell me the “first draft” was ready, it was too late. I had already bought a course and started building simple minisites to get a feel for the systems, programs, mechanisms behind it all.
Few people would have done that, I suppose, but I had lost months of marketing opportunities waiting for a “landing page” to drive offline traffic to.
What a waste!
What’s worse, I’m not alone. Check this out…
“Michael,
Thanks so much for all your help! I’ve been feeling like I’m hitting brick walls with everyone in the business world and I actually left our meeting feeling excited again. It’s nice to meet people with the same business ethics. Be sure I will be referring you to everyone. I’ll also be contacting Rob as soon as the web guys give me some dates and times they’re free. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all the advice and help from you guys!!!!
Rachel”
Do you want to know how long it took to get her site up? Over a year. Is she happy with it? No. Are the problems getting fixed in a timely manner?
You can probably figure that one out for yourself.
Now that we got all that out of the way, here’s a simple checklist to follow so you don’t get burned (again!)…
- choose a domain name that matches your business identity and keywords
- register the domain name YOURSELF.
- DON’T host your site on your web developers server, platform, etc. NEVER. EVER. NEVER.
- Use a REAL web hosting company that can support your business and growing traffic (bandwidth) and is secure.
We’ll actually explain why in upcoming posts, tackling each issue one by one. And when Rob checks out the article, he may just add a few more to the list.
Until then, you can always leave a comment, rant, opinion, whatever. Ask a question. Share a rip-off of your own. I promise we’ll get around to answering (more often than not, sooner than you might think or expect).
Next Steps…
Any questions? Comments? Did we hit a nerve?
Drop us a line by leaving a comment. We will reply (here, and by email if you’d like) as soon as we’re able. And if there’s a topic you want us to discuss, let us know.
To receive monthly emails with summaries of all our latest content, sign up for our “Monthly Web Tips” above. Does that sound fair enough to you?
To discover how our web marketing firm can help you with your online presence, traffic, leads and sales, kindly follow the link. You can also review our web marketing services to better understand how we work with clients just like you.
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