Bank of America Buying Abusive Domain Names

Nite_Hawk writes "Bank of America has snapped up hundreds of abusive domain names for its senior executives and board members in what is being perceived as a defensive strategy against the future publication of damaging insider info from whistleblowing website WikiLeaks. According to Domain Name Wire, the US bank has been aggressively registering domain names including its board of directors' and senior executives' names followed by 'sucks' and 'blows.'"

Comments

Just Making Themselves Look Worse

[mikeb39]

This seems to be pretty close to admitting that their senior execs have done things that would cause public outrage. Seems like a smarter strategy would have been just to shut up completely about it until seeing what these leaks actually contain. But, I suppose if you know beyond a doubt you will be proven guilty and held to account for something, you might as well prepare for it.

Re:They can't afford them all

[Daniel Dvorkin]

I'm proud to report that a friend of mine grabbed http://www.bankofamericasucks.org/ before BoA got to it. Currently it's just a redirect to an IT World article, but oh, the possibilities ... especially since she works for a hosting company.

Re:Clean slate...

[IonOtter]

That's possible, but it's certainly NOT "free and clear".

Here's how you do it, in a VERY simplified form.

1. Open an escrow account and place your monthly mortgage payment, plus interest, into that account.
2. File a small claims suit with your local county, against the mortgage company holding your mortgage. Make it for the monthly amount of the mortgage, plus interest. You are filing suit for them to provide a signed and notarized copy of the deed, as well as any copies of the bill of sale for ALL of the transactions they made with the property.
3. Pay a process server to serve the holder the papers, or at least try.
4. Hire a court recorder. Chances are good that the court will try to simply dump you once it becomes apparent what you're doing. The court reporter will keep them honest.
5. Keep EXCELLENT records of every penny spent, as well as all transactions and communications with the process server and the court.
6. Show up in court on the appointed day.

Now here's where it gets tricky.

The mortgage holder, if they can even be found, probably won't bother to send a lawyer for such a small sum. They'll simply ignore it, and you win by default. If they DO show up, they have to produce the paperwork. Again, chances are good they can't. If they produce a robo-signed copy, they'll be charged with forgery. The odds are stacked in your favor.

If the unlikely event happens that they can prove that the debt is valid, simply resume paying the mortgage and carry on as normal. That's what the escrow account is for.

If nobody shows up, take the money you won in the small claims suit and place THAT into the escrow account too. This shows good faith on your part.

7. File a new small-claims suit again for the next month. Follow steps 1-7, for six months or more. Six months is probably best.
8. On the sixth court appearance, ask the court to nullify the debt. You can...

a. Show you fully intend to pay all debts if the paperwork is provided. (The escrow account again)
b. Show you can cover all interest, penalties and fees if the paperwork is provided and you have to resume paying.
c. Show that you can cover all costs of the court.
d. Show that you paid the process server.
e. Show you followed due process and due diligence.

And the mortgage holder has shown nothing but negligence and dereliction of their obligations.

The court will hand you the property with a clean deed.

BUT WAIT!!!!!

Remember that escrow account? DO NOT SPEND IT!!!

You're going to need that money to pay CAPITAL GAINS TAXES, because a new house will constitute a huge jump in your income, and that mortgage payment write-off is going bye-bye too.

You can tack this on as Step 8f: You can show ability to pay all federal, state and local taxes once the house is yours.

Bonus: If the mortgage holder sends your debt to collections while the court cases are pending, they're in violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and can be slapped with a heavy fine on top of losing the mortgage.

You can spend that.