Namesilo is a well-known domain registration and management platform. It was established in 2009 and is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Namesilo offers a wide range of domain registration services, including almost all top-level domains (TLDs) and some country code top-level domains (ccTLDs).

Currently, most of my domains are hosted on Namesilo. Today, I tried to top up my balance on Namesilo using NobePay virtual card, but my account got frozen.

Review of the Issue:

On May 28, 2023, I planned to top up my balance on Namesilo. Considering that there was some money in my NobePay virtual card, I used the NobePay card segment "558068" to top up Namesilo.

1. The first attempt to fill in the credit card information resulted in payment failure.
2. Thinking that I might have entered the credit card information incorrectly, I copied the credit card information again for the second attempt, but it still failed.
3. This time, I suspected that there might be an issue with the card. So, I tried a different virtual card from NobePay, still using the "558068" card segment. The card number, name, and address were all different. However, after clicking submit, my account immediately got frozen, and the session automatically logged out.

When I tried to manually log in to Namesilo again, I received the following message:

Sorry, your account is currently inactive and you are not able to login.

I have many important domains on Namesilo, and now I'm in trouble.

Contacting Customer Support:

So, I immediately contacted the online customer support on Namesilo's website, and luckily, it was a real person I was chatting with, not a chatbot.

I explained the situation to the customer support and requested to have my account unfrozen. Within a few minutes, I received a response from the customer support with a form link.

I opened the form, which required me to submit photos of my bank card and identification proof.

After clicking submit, nothing happened. So, I contacted the online customer support again, and they asked me to send an email for further feedback.

I immediately wrote an email explaining the situation and sent it to Namesilo support email. After about tens of minutes, I received a reply, which provided me with a new form link, this time with a token.

I opened the link and submitted the form again, providing screenshots (with sensitive information redacted) of the NobePay virtual card backend and my passport information. After waiting for about an hour, I received an email from Namesilo stating that my account has been unfrozen and they do not support most virtual cards.

Risk Control Speculation:

Due to the low threshold of virtual cards, it is possible that many card segments have been blacklisted. I speculate that it might be due to the card segment or the inconsistency between the name on the virtual card and Namesilo.

Lessons Learned:

1. Be cautious when using virtual cards to top up critical services, as it may result in account suspension.
2. When registering for foreign services, do not fill in the name and address randomly. Otherwise, when your account gets suspended and you are asked to provide proof, you may be at a loss. Fortunately, I used my real name on Namesilo.
3. If you must use a virtual card, it is best to use the same name on the virtual card as the one registered with the service provider.

Conclusion:

After this experience, with the help of Namesilo's customer support, I successfully unfroze my account. Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened, and I would like to commend Namesilo for their efficiency and service. Even on weekends, they have staff available for online support.