yes it s legal for them to purchase the webisite and sell it back to you..it s an ****** move, but it s legal. also check any fine print that may have allowed them to do that.and you can take legal action if they refuse to remove your personal info.. THAT is illegalbut that website was up for grabs and they were smart enough to do it.
is your business name registered? if so I don t think it s legal for them to take it unless they have a business with the same name, many large companies like mcdonald s have sued people for using their name without permission. I would contact some kind of authority, I just don t know which one, maybe the FTC?
This is trap. Don t believe it.Just report to police.Don t get lawyer.It s may cost you.Let police do their job..Now You learn something...1. Don t trust anybody in Internet2. Do it business by your own3. Be careful any document that you sign.4. Every transaction in business must have a report(proof).
It is legal for them to buy the website. You are under no obligation to buy it from them, and they cannot continue to use you business info once you have refused to buy the website and/or domain name.
Heck no. You should tell them you are planning on phoning the police.I wouldn t go the lawyer route just yet, it will just cost you money. Play hardball back. Tell them you are calling (everyone) you can think of. Police, State Rep, FCC, etc etc etc
Get a lawyer, you re a victim of fraud.
Its highly unethical...you should take every opportunity to tell anyone about who will listen...you might even try to get an article published in the paper.so...are they Telling you that you owe money or are they trying to offer you the product in hopes of making an additional sale?...on the lighter side.....is the website professional looking? does it have alot of function?$500 is actually a really really good price for a decent custom website...you might just consider buying it if it is custom made. ...but then again....they might have just used a public photoshop template...which usually only run about $90....so your being ripped off in that case.You should look up free website temples ...and look at the various sites selling templates to see if you see that one they used....if you find it....point it out to them...if you do buy it from them....make sure you have complete access to the administrative side...so you can get the domain name hosted with a different company.Once you have the site....be sure to include a page which tells the story of how you got the site.You might want to check out www.weebly.com ..it is very reasonably priced and gives you some good functionality. It is one of the better Instant site services out there.Go set up your own site....alter your domain name ( put a hyphen in the middle or something)...and of course include the page which explains the extortion story....with a contact form looking for any other victims of this companies extortion attempts.You may also want to contact a lawyer who gives a fre first consultation just to get some general info about the legalities of their scam.Good Luck
There are cases involving squatters that have created domaines with big company names and basically held them for ransom. I don t think what they are doing is illegal until they try to use it for themselves or damage your credit in some way for not buying their website design work. It is simply a bad sales tactic. Take for example an insurance agent... He/she can work up an attractive life insurance policy for you but that doesn t mean you have to buy it. I m sure an attorney would be happy to charge you a bundle when you yourself can simply tell them to **** off.
The part that puts it over the edge is how they intended upon using the name. Anyone can pretty much buy any name. Their next step is what makes the difference.I bought a domain name called fedx. Apparently FedEx did not like this and I heard from their attorneys. It was easier to let the name expire then fight. I was told that if my intention was to try and sell the name to them, they would have me dead to rights. If I was going to make a political spout off site, even though I may be legal, it would cost me.Your most affordable option is to first print the site off they built to have record and then have an attorney write a letter. Usually this will knock some sense into them and their attorney may advise them to back down and maybe even surrender the name to you.You need make sure there was no aggreement or small print that you may have accidentally agreed to.Good Luck,Terms of use: Offer of assistance is basic advice and not to be construed to be providing legal or accounting advice. You must see a qualified professional for advice for your specific situation.
