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Ask HN: Suspended by Google Domains
We received a notice that our domain (registered with https://domains.google/) will be suspended in 72 hours due to a spam complaint. Truth is, out of 205,169 emails sent, only 15 of them were marked as spam.
There is no one at Google who would help. And now we have less than 42 hours to resolve this issue. Failing that, our website will be cut off from more than 500,000 community members worldwide.
- Jugurtha 5y agoHi, This could be an instance of email spoofing. Can you check the headers of the email for any domains that look suspicious? What did the email say exactly? Why would a spamming domain be suspended in 72 hours instead of right away? If it actually is a legitimate "notice" and not email spoofing, you can try them on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Google https://twitter.com/Google Google has been responsive pretty much every time I have needed them, which is impressive. I tweeted a few days ago, not even tweeting "at" them, and they got in touch: https://twitter.com/jugurthahadjar/status/1430510105909501952 https://twitter.com/jugurthahadjar/status/143051010590950195...
- ml-engineer 5y agoThe suspension notice was definitely sent by Google: From: registrar-support@google.com Subject: A message from Google Domains SPF: PASS with IP 209.85.220.75 DKIM: 'PASS' with domain google.com DMARC: 'PASS' The email said: Hi there, Your domain was reported for spamming activities and will be suspended in 3 days. ... It may result in cancellation of your domain registration or termination of your account. Regards, The Google Domains Support Team --- So far the experience has been exactly the same as how Gitbook described their similar situation: https://blog.gitbook.com/tech/post-mortems/06-20-gitbook-domains-blocked-by-registrar https://blog.gitbook.com/tech/post-mortems/06-20-gitbook-dom.... No one at Google would answer any questions. And we have no idea what to do right now.
- Jugurtha 5y agoEmails in email spoofing definitely show a legitimate domain in "From"; it wouldn't be fun otherwise. Look at the headers. All the domains in the many "Received" fields, "Return-Path", etc. Look not for signs it is authentic; look for signs it is not. Also: https://developers.google.com/domains/express/support https://developers.google.com/domains/express/support
- ml-engineer 5y agoSure, we did reach out to Google Domains support team. They acknowledged the case as valid, however, could not answer any questions about it (because it is being handled by the compliance team). We spoke with 5 different agents so far.
- ganeshkrishnan 5y ago>out of 205,169 emails sent What's the timeframe for this?
- ml-engineer 5y agoThat's from the past 30 days.
- q3k 5y agoAre you sure you’re not actually spamming people? What sort of messages are these? Did people subscribe to them? How long have you been sending these out for?
- ml-engineer 5y agoAbsolutely not! We use double opt-in, with explicit subscribe call to action. We are fully GDPR/CCPA compliant.
- tssva 5y agoIf the content of your email or frequency of emails is not inline with the expectation of subscribers when they subscribed, some will report the emails as spam regardless of the steps you documented.
- ml-engineer 5y agoSure, we have been doing this for several years so we are aware of these pitfalls. The issue is the way Google has been handling this case. There is no process, no communication. They have made extreme threats, with nothing to back it up, no way to respond.
- gtirloni 5y agoThis a thousand times. We also go to greath lengths to ensure there's no spam coming from our servers and then we get a notification and it's for a legitimate email that someone reported as spam for whatever reasons. It's frustrating.
- readonthegoapp 5y agoMaybe obvious and or stupid But can you transfer the domain?
- ml-engineer 5y agoWe could not transfer the domain. I would like to because the whole community is currently being threatened. Not to mention, personally it could result in "termination of your account," the Google account that I have been using for more than a decade (for my emails, cell phone, wallet, etc)!
- sneak 5y agoIt's a bit late now, but it's a good idea to make a new fresh Google account for each project (which will require a new fresh phone number to verify it when you create it, I suggest Mint prepaid), for reasons which are at this moment too obvious.
- ml-engineer 5y agoThank you, especially for recommending Mint.
- ganeshkrishnan 5y agoAll google accounts are tied up/linked up. If one Google account is banned, Google will terminate every thing else.
- ml-engineer 5y agoAt this point, I would like to have NO relationship with Google, period. This has been a nightmare to deal with, and I have learned my lessons. NO GOOGLE.
- sneak 5y agoOnly if you link them by logging in to multiple ones from the same cookie jar. Use a distinct number for creating each, a vpn at all times, and don't cross the streams (use a fresh browser/profile).
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- DoItToMe81 5y agoThere's nothing you can do. Google will not listen unless there's giant public outcry. I would recommend going with a more proven registrar and trying your hardest to inform your community of the new domain before it's too late.
- ml-engineer 5y agoExactly, I am learning it the hard way. I have been warned many, many times before (about Google) but I did not take them seriously.
- throwaddzuzxd 5y agoNote that in the case of domain names Google is not all powerful. The ICANN and the ccTLD registries are. If Google threatens you and your domain and doesn't let you appeal, you can (and should!) contact both the registry directly and the ICANN if the TLD is not a ccTLD (> 2 characters)
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- DoItToMe81 5y agoHe definitely should, but the issue is that, at least in my experience, ICANN and TLD registries are rather slow, and he'll already experience serious downtime by the time he gets his domain back, assuming he ever does. In a time of major convenience, a few days of being down can mean thousands of people move elsewhere, to services with a more proven uptime. It's really not easy to go through problems like this unscathed.
- qmarchi 5y agoHeyo, Googler here. Can you shoot me an email to <snip> with your domain information? I'll forward it where I can and hope we can figure out what's going on. I unfortunately can promise anything, but I'll try my hardest! Disc: I work at Google, but not near Domains. EDIT: removed email as I got the info I needed!
- ml-engineer 5y agoForwarded you the original email. Thank you so much!!
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- throwaddzuzxd 5y agoCan you instead push for giving your *customers* the ability to actually contact you in case of a problem? It's shameful that the only way to contact one of the biggest megacorp is being noticed by an employee on Hacker News. FWIW, in the case of a domain, this might be an ICANN breach (if OP's domain is a gTLD) or a registry breach (if it's a ccTLD). You HAVE TO be contactable and you HAVE TO reply. If you don't comply to the rules Google Domains might in theory lose its accreditation.
- ml-engineer 5y agoIndeed! We have contacted them 15 times, and provided as much detail as possible for case resolution. Forty-two hours later, we have yet to receive a single reply! It's truly astonishing.
- devwastaken 5y agoI guarantee the actual teams on these systems want there to be a support network. Google bosses do not. There's no way internal teams are going to overcome that decision.
- ml-engineer 5y agoThank you. I have submitted a report to the ICANN Complaints Office (https://www.icann.org/complaints-office https://www.icann.org/complaints-office).
- devwastaken 5y agoMove to cloudflare domains. Google has no business controlling anything.
- ml-engineer 5y agoYes! We are moving everything away from Google. No more Google products. Personally I have been fooled by their shiny, easy-to-use UIs. Turns out it's a trap!
- traveler01 5y agoLove how they have this in the said page: "Get 24/7 Google support from real humans." Amazing.
- ml-engineer 5y agoThey are so shiny and so smart. It's easy to tell behind it is a group of truly smart people -- marketing, designers, engineers, and etc. Except, working with them have become our worst nightmare, the greatest risk to our existence.
- traveler01 5y agoThey got so used of the user being their product, that they forgot sometimes they actually have to give support to the users who are using their service.
- cpach 5y agoIf you want to change registrar, I can recommend Dynadot. They offer support via chat, e-mail and phone. I’ve also heard good things about Gandi.net.
- ml-engineer 5y agoThank you. Very helpful!
- rshnotsecure 5y agoGoogle Domains has had, from time to time, many odd complaints made against it. Thankfully, Google Cloud Platform DNS has started to roll out, and I believe both management AND registration is available with enterprise support and more significant security.
- Trias11 5y agoCan you move your domain registration elsewhere? Why you should be put it with this nonsense from google?