Network Solutions Web.com Deceptive and Fraudulent Business Practices Herndon, Virginia

Our company has used the services of Network Solutions when it was owned by VeriSign since 2001. Every now and again we are contacted by their sales department trying to sell us one of their new products they what us to try. I am not here to slam the company since I am only one of six million or more subscribers, but to tell you the truth of their deceptive business practices.

A few months ago we were contacted by a salesman for their Gorilla Marketing Product. What you should know that before you start a conversation with anyone in this organization they have to verify your account.  Once this is done you have given them access to your financial information or credit card on file. Now it so happens that we were coming up for our domain and hosting renewal. Whenever you renew the hosting the domain is always thrown in at no charge.

Most subscribers know this and also know this would be foolish to set the auto-renew feature because you will be charged full price for both services. With the end of the month close at hand the salesperson became very anxious to close the sale, promising that if we signed up for the Guerilla Marketing service at eighty dollars per month the fee for the domain and hosting would be waived renewed and your card billed every month.

This is a method companys use to develop revenue stream. So what this slick salesman does is set the auto-renew feature in anticipation of closing the deal. Before we can make a decision we are charged the full amount for the hosting and domain renewal which comes to nearly two hundred dollars. We contact customer service and are told that it will take up to ten days for the funds to be returned.

This is a form of embezzling. To avoid becoming a victim of this scam it is important that if you have a card on file to check the auto-renew feature often to avoid this from happening to you, or better yet do not leave your card on file with anyone. Before making this posting I have discovered that this is a common scam with this company. If there is an attorney that is interested in seeking a legal remedy this is the number for their corporate offices. (570) 708-8700 

In August 2011, it was announced that Network Solutions will be bought by Web.com for $405 million and 18 million shares. On October 27th, 2011, Web.com announced the completion of the Network Solutions acquisition. This was immediately followed by the departure of CEO Tim Kelly and other key leadership. Large scale employee layoffs began the following day. By December 31st, 2011, over half of the office space in the Herndon, VA based headquarters had been vacated and returned to the property management. On March 31st, 2012, the company's Belleville, Illinois office was closed

The Web.com Group was formed as a result of the merger of Web.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: WWWW) and Website Pros, Inc. (NASDAQ: WSPI).

The company was initially funded with $65 million from Norwest Venture Partners, Crosspoint Ventures, Chase, Verizon (Bell Atlantic), Office Depot, and Dell; and subsequently by Insight Venture Partners just prior to its IPO. It took only six years from start-up to achieve its goal of dominating the market, and went public in 2005