Scams Among Web Hosts
If you are new to web hosting, domains, and creating your own websites, there are a few things you need to know before jumping head first into what could be a scam. You should not be very trusting to just anyone on the web that is asking you to pay a monthly fee for services you are not sure they actually give. There are several ways a web host can scam you into losing your money and possibly your information on your site as well.
When beginning your search for the perfect web host, be sure to check the TOS (Terms of Service) with every host you check out. Doing a full check on the site, what it has to offer, and what the policies are, will help you get a better understanding of what you would be signing up for. When viewing sites, always look for a money back guarantee and contact information. If a site does not have any way to get in contact with the administrator, more than likely it is a scam.
Be aware that any material you place on a site that is hosted by a web host, full rights might be placed in the web hosts name, the terms of service should have something about your uploads and copyright material. Do not trust sites that offer unlimited bandwidth, this is impossible. Some sites take an average of how much bandwidth a single client uses, and sets that for all, making it seems like it is unlimited if you do not upload much. If a site is new, more than likely it is not trustworthy, try to do research to see if there are any reviews on the site, if there are none, do not spend your money on this site.
There are certain scams that have names attached, such as the cloaking scams and the hacking scams. The cloaking scam is where the host serves one page to people and a different page or pages to a search engine spider. The best way to avoid this is to go with a big name brand web host. The hacking scams are normally done when a spider requests a page, the pages are modified and bring back one of the hackers pages from a hidden folder in your account. In order to stop hackers, it is best to avoid using a password that is easily figured out, choose an off the wall password.
If you are trying to make an impact, and have your website put out there and remembered, you will not be able to do that with a website that offers you a free domain. The free domain names normally consist of the website adding backslashes with the hosts name in there as well. Sites that have slashes in them are not ranked as high, as those that are clear of them.
By signing up to a web host, yes you will be getting a domain name to yourself, but there is the possibility that your domain name is not completely yours. The web host might contain the rights to owning the domain name if you ever choose to change hosts or if you choose not to host your site there anymore. When singing up with a web host that host has access to edit your information, change your links, and move info to and from folders that may or may not exist.
Some key points to remember about scams through web hosts are, do research on each web host before you decide to go with the first one. If you want people to remember your website name, buy a domain name and do not rely on those free ones that a web host will give you for signing up. When a host tells you that you have unlimited space or bandwidth for free, more than likely there is a scam among the site. The best thing to always remember is, the first 90 days are scam free, in this time period you can request your money back from the bank transfer, therefore, the web host loses that payment.
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