If it weren’t for Mtime’s inaccessibility a few days ago, I wouldn’t have known that the relevant authorities have discovered a more convenient method than pulling the network cables in the server room: notifying domestic domain registrars to “clientHold (domain name suspension of resolution)” the domain names.
clientHold is the simplest means for registrars to disable a domain name. Since the beginning of this year, there have been multiple incidents where well-known domestic websites were “clientHold” by domain registrars.
Outside the wall, there’s the GFW; inside the wall, there’s clientHold. These two knives are indeed formidable.
HOLD Your Domain Name Without Explanation
Generally, there are three reasons for a domain name to be clientHold:
- The registrant information is inaccurate or false, leading to the registrar holding the domain (this is the most common case).
- The domain is involved in illegal activities, such as pornography or subversion.
- The domain is implicated; if a domain under the same server IP has issues, all domains on that server are held (collective punishment).
Below is an example of a HOLD notice:
“In accordance with the ‘China Internet Domain Name Management Measures’ and the requirements of relevant national departments that ‘registration information must be true, accurate, and complete,’ we have conducted multiple spot checks on registration information. We have notified you several times: Your ID 30888**** under the domain **. involves ‘false, inaccurate, or incomplete’ registration information. However, your domain information has not been updated within the stipulated time. Therefore, your domain **. has been held since 2009-05-20, and the held domain will affect its use.”
Before a domain is HOLD, the domain registrar generally does not give any warning, meaning you won’t know how you died until after you’ve ascended to heaven…
Here are some domains that were HOLD this year:
2010-01-05 Xinnet suspended the resolution of 51.com and IT168.com, among others:
2010-01-05 Website domain blocked, millions of users unable to access “Blog Bus”:
2010-01-21 TechWeb.com.cn domain resolution stopped:
2010-01-25 Liba.com was suspended by Xinnet:
2010-01-27 “Shun Network,” sponsored by Jinan Daily Press Group, was suspended by Wanwang:
2010-10-15 Mtime domain resolution stopped:
2010-10-26 Shentong Express was suspended by Wanwang:
Thus, the internet rumors about the four foolish behaviors online:
a. Register with real names, convenient for cross-province tracking (recent news of similar cases);
b. Use Yahoo for email, convenient for evidence collection and imprisonment (several people have been imprisoned due to Yahoo email actively reporting criminal information in emails);
c. Use Wanwang for domains, always being HOLD, never explained;
d. Use Rising for antivirus, always entertaining, never killing viruses.
Previously, there were also rumors about the four major sins of domestic domain registrars:
a. Transferring domains is basically hopeless
b. Low-cost registration is basically a trap
c. Domain transfer is basically charged
d. Domain snatching is basically impossible
PS: How to Prevent Your Domain from Being HOLD;
Even websites operated by companies and professional teams can hardly escape the fate of domain suspension, let alone the fragile personal websites, which are like “a sword hanging over their necks.” Once “clientHold,” it might be permanent.
Currently, since domain registrars are managed by region, a simple way to prevent your domain from being HOLD is to transfer it to registrars in other regions. However, CN domains cannot be transferred, so you can only pray for good luck.