Free trial - nice, but with a drawback

Tipperton · 24 Apr 2005, 11:26 PM

It's nice when an e-mail service offers a free trial of their service, but it comes at a price...

Services that offer free trials generally get listed as free e-mail services by many e-commerce providers and a number of web sites. These sites then refuse to allow you to use that e-mail address because most credit card fraud is done using free e-mail services. It's darned inconvenient!

It's all too easy for a frauder to set up a free e-mail account with fake or false information, do his "dirty" deeds, then abandon the account...

I think that even though it entails some risk... In my search for a RunBox replacement, I'm going to consider offering a free trial as a negative strike against the service.

The one possible exception might be those services that require a verifiably valid credit card just to set up the trial. This will at least require valid information be provided so the credit card can be verified. This might prevent the service from being listed as a free service.

carverrn · 25 Apr 2005, 05:42 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tipperton
It's nice when an e-mail service offers a free trial of their service, but it comes at a price...

Services that offer free trials generally get listed as free e-mail services by many e-commerce providers and a number of web sites. These sites then refuse to allow you to use that e-mail address because most credit card fraud is done using free e-mail services. It's darned inconvenient!

I understand what you're saying because I've run into that in the past.

My question is what does my email address have to do with my credit card? My credit card company doesn't let me get a credit card based on my email address. I have to provide a home address and other information that can be verified.

When I order online they usually require name and address even if I'm downloading. So why doesn't the merchant verify that the name and address given match the credit card before approving the purchase.

Twice now I've had charges on my credit cards that weren't mine. I immediately contacted my credit card company to report the disputed charge. I then contacted the service that issued the charge. In both cases the name and address given with the credit card number were not mine. One was for a software download and the other was for access to a porn site. Now they could have been honest mistakes, like mis-entered numbers, but if the vendor had taken the time to verify the information there wouldn't have been a problem.

Personally I think it's the vendors you should complain to about this issue.

Not everyone who gets a Runbox account pays or can pay by credit card so requiring a credit card for a trial account probably isn't a good idea.

Oh ... and get this ... one of the vendors that wouldn't accept my Runbox address DID accept my Yahoo address. Go figure.

Regards,
Rich

Tipperton · 25 Apr 2005, 05:51 AM

The problem is, that your name and address are easily obtained, especially if you don't bother to have your phone number un-published.

A person wanting to use a stolen credit card number would have little trouble getting the information he needs to act as you when using your credit card info. Most (if not all) of these people use e-mail addresses that they can easily abandon and leave no real trace of who they really are.

That's why e-commerce providers have begun not accepting them for purchases.

I admit and agree the solution isn't perfect... About the only thing you can do about it is to find an e-mail service that isn't considered free or anonymous...

carverrn · 25 Apr 2005, 11:07 AM

My point was that an email address, paid or free, has nothing do with a credit card and shouldn't.

If the places won't accept the information without a paid email account then a theif can just pay for an account with the stolen credit card. Simple way around the merchants unrealistic requirement.

Are we sure this isn't because Runbox use to be a free email service before they went to pay? Some places still have Runbox flagged as a free service. It may have nothing to do with their trial period.

Regards,
Rich

Tipperton · 25 Apr 2005, 11:04 PM

Maybe in some cases you might be right about RunBox at one time being free.

But in one case they specifically said that it was because they had a free trial. They said that since no billing information is required to start the trial it makes the trial esentially anonymous and that more than the free is what they are refusing.

And I agree with you, they should not be using a person's e-mail address to decide whether to accept business from that person or not. Businesses that do that usually get a complaint from me as well as the declaration that I will patronize or recommend anyone else patronize them for such a meaningless and irrelavant practice.

Problem is there are a couple of sites that do use the practice that I do want/need to do business with...

carverrn · 26 Apr 2005, 04:32 AM

I'm curious if they are consistent with that policy. If they are that would eliminate a large customer base.

Like all people that use Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail, FastMail, Runbox, FuseMail, Lycos, Netscape, Mail.com, MyWay, BlueBottle, MailSnare and so on. All these services offer either FREE accounts or FREE Trial accounts that do not require a credit card or any type of verification of identity.

I really doubt that they are applying that policy equally with all these services.

Care to mention the services you've encountered that won't accept Runbox email addresses? I'd be curious to see how they would answer the question.

Regards,
Rich

Tipperton · 26 Apr 2005, 05:22 AM

The last one I encountered was RegNow, I know SWREG also uses the practice but haven't tried purchasing anything through them with RunBox so I don't know.

I also know that both eBay and PayPal consider RunBox either a free or anonymous service. So although they will accept those e-mails they require you to go through an additional proof of identity.

A while back I ran across a list of such e-mail services that many of the e-commerce sites used to determine acceptability. Unfortunately I don't have the address to the site and can't seem to find it on the search engines.

It would be very helpful right now to help avoid the non-sense by avoiding the "black listed" services.

carverrn · 26 Apr 2005, 05:49 AM

I think it was SWREG that I had that with too. That was a few years ago and I don't use my Runbox.com address any more for anyone.

Instead I use my own domain name. You can get a domain name for as little as $8-10 US / year.

Many domain registrars offer free email forwarding so your mail can follow you to your main email service even if you change services.

You can use specific addresses for different services:

swreg.org @ mydomainname.com
regnow.com @ mydomainname.com

So you know how someone got your email address.

That might be easier than shopping around for an email services not on e-commerce black lists.

Regards,
Rich

carverrn · 26 Apr 2005, 06:04 AM

Oh ... you could also try using RUNBOX.US instead.

I was reading some "how to prevent credit card fraud" for some e-commerce stuff and they said to check if they provide free email by going to the main site. For example, if their address was "myusername @ emailservice.com" then they say to go to "emailservice.com" and see if they offer free email addresses. RUNBOX.US doesn't resolve to any website, it is only valid for email addresses. So it might pass as a NON-FREE email address.

Or use the address from your ISP. My ISP will let me forward my mail to another account.

Regards,
Rich

Tipperton · 26 Apr 2005, 08:53 AM

Quote:

RUNBOX.US doesn't resolve to any website, it is only valid for email addresses. So it might pass as a NON-FREE email address.

Hmm... If I stay with RunBox (doubtful but then again, if they straighten out...) I'll have to try that. Of course that assumes they don't go and try other extensions or do a whois on the domain....

Quote:

Or use the address from your ISP. My ISP will let me forward my mail to another account.

I'll pass, the whole idea, for me, in even having a separate e-mail service is to avoid the hassle of my e-mail address changing when I move or change ISPs.

carverrn · 26 Apr 2005, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tipperton
I'll pass, the whole idea, for me, in even having a separate e-mail service is to avoid the hassle of my e-mail address changing when I move or change ISPs.

One of the many reasons to get your own domain name.

Regards,
Rich

Madiver · 28 Apr 2005, 05:36 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tipperton
The last one I encountered was RegNow, I know SWREG also uses the practice but haven't tried purchasing anything through them with RunBox so I don't know.

I also know that both eBay and PayPal consider RunBox either a free or anonymous service. So although they will accept those e-mails they require you to go through an additional proof of identity.

A while back I ran across a list of such e-mail services that many of the e-commerce sites used to determine acceptability. Unfortunately I don't have the address to the site and can't seem to find it on the search engines.

It would be very helpful right now to help avoid the non-sense by avoiding the "black listed" services.

RunBox probably is on the "list" because they did, at one time, offer totally free accounts. We (MailSnare) have never come accross a service blacklisting an e-mail address from a service provider that provides limited trial accounts, but that certainly doesn't mean they aren't out there (I can tell you first-hand that credit card fraud is a major headache). I would be interested in hearing more about people's experience with this sort of issue.

Mark

24 Apr 2005, 11:26 PM	#1
Tipperton Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Behind you! Posts: 50	Free trial - nice, but with a drawback It's nice when an e-mail service offers a free trial of their service, but it comes at a price... Services that offer free trials generally get listed as free e-mail services by many e-commerce providers and a number of web sites. These sites then refuse to allow you to use that e-mail address because most credit card fraud is done using free e-mail services. It's darned inconvenient! It's all too easy for a frauder to set up a free e-mail account with fake or false information, do his "dirty" deeds, then abandon the account... I think that even though it entails some risk... In my search for a RunBox replacement, I'm going to consider offering a free trial as a negative strike against the service. The one possible exception might be those services that require a verifiably valid credit card just to set up the trial. This will at least require valid information be provided so the credit card can be verified. This might prevent the service from being listed as a free service.

25 Apr 2005, 05:51 AM	#3
Tipperton Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Behind you! Posts: 50	The problem is, that your name and address are easily obtained, especially if you don't bother to have your phone number un-published. A person wanting to use a stolen credit card number would have little trouble getting the information he needs to act as you when using your credit card info. Most (if not all) of these people use e-mail addresses that they can easily abandon and leave no real trace of who they really are. That's why e-commerce providers have begun not accepting them for purchases. I admit and agree the solution isn't perfect... About the only thing you can do about it is to find an e-mail service that isn't considered free or anonymous...

25 Apr 2005, 11:07 AM	#4
carverrn Intergalactic Postmaster Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 5,606 Representative of: Runbox.com	My point was that an email address, paid or free, has nothing do with a credit card and shouldn't. If the places won't accept the information without a paid email account then a theif can just pay for an account with the stolen credit card. Simple way around the merchants unrealistic requirement. Are we sure this isn't because Runbox use to be a free email service before they went to pay? Some places still have Runbox flagged as a free service. It may have nothing to do with their trial period. Regards, Rich

25 Apr 2005, 11:04 PM	#5
Tipperton Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Behind you! Posts: 50	Maybe in some cases you might be right about RunBox at one time being free. But in one case they specifically said that it was because they had a free trial. They said that since no billing information is required to start the trial it makes the trial esentially anonymous and that more than the free is what they are refusing. And I agree with you, they should not be using a person's e-mail address to decide whether to accept business from that person or not. Businesses that do that usually get a complaint from me as well as the declaration that I will patronize or recommend anyone else patronize them for such a meaningless and irrelavant practice. Problem is there are a couple of sites that do use the practice that I do want/need to do business with...

26 Apr 2005, 04:32 AM	#6
carverrn Intergalactic Postmaster Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 5,606 Representative of: Runbox.com	I'm curious if they are consistent with that policy. If they are that would eliminate a large customer base. Like all people that use Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail, FastMail, Runbox, FuseMail, Lycos, Netscape, Mail.com, MyWay, BlueBottle, MailSnare and so on. All these services offer either FREE accounts or FREE Trial accounts that do not require a credit card or any type of verification of identity. I really doubt that they are applying that policy equally with all these services. Care to mention the services you've encountered that won't accept Runbox email addresses? I'd be curious to see how they would answer the question. Regards, Rich

26 Apr 2005, 05:22 AM	#7
Tipperton Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Behind you! Posts: 50	The last one I encountered was RegNow, I know SWREG also uses the practice but haven't tried purchasing anything through them with RunBox so I don't know. I also know that both eBay and PayPal consider RunBox either a free or anonymous service. So although they will accept those e-mails they require you to go through an additional proof of identity. A while back I ran across a list of such e-mail services that many of the e-commerce sites used to determine acceptability. Unfortunately I don't have the address to the site and can't seem to find it on the search engines. It would be very helpful right now to help avoid the non-sense by avoiding the "black listed" services.

26 Apr 2005, 05:49 AM	#8
carverrn Intergalactic Postmaster Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 5,606 Representative of: Runbox.com	I think it was SWREG that I had that with too. That was a few years ago and I don't use my Runbox.com address any more for anyone. Instead I use my own domain name. You can get a domain name for as little as $8-10 US / year. Many domain registrars offer free email forwarding so your mail can follow you to your main email service even if you change services. You can use specific addresses for different services: swreg.org @ mydomainname.com regnow.com @ mydomainname.com So you know how someone got your email address. That might be easier than shopping around for an email services not on e-commerce black lists. Regards, Rich

26 Apr 2005, 06:04 AM	#9
carverrn Intergalactic Postmaster Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 5,606 Representative of: Runbox.com	Oh ... you could also try using RUNBOX.US instead. I was reading some "how to prevent credit card fraud" for some e-commerce stuff and they said to check if they provide free email by going to the main site. For example, if their address was "myusername @ emailservice.com" then they say to go to "emailservice.com" and see if they offer free email addresses. RUNBOX.US doesn't resolve to any website, it is only valid for email addresses. So it might pass as a NON-FREE email address. Or use the address from your ISP. My ISP will let me forward my mail to another account. Regards, Rich