The internet can be a wonderful time saving tool, but customer support via the internet is too often an endless cycle of frustration. Case in point, my week long ordeal to obtain a personal code-signing certificate from Comodo.
It started innocently enough last Monday when I decided to purchase a code signing certificate (to avoid that stupid “Unknown publisher” message from Windoze). A search found Tucows selling a one year certificate for $75, so I signed up. The first few steps were easy, fill out the application with your name address, phone number, email address and credit card. Looking back, I wish I had investigated who actually issued their certificates, there was nothing to indicate that it was through Comodo. I tried dealing with them last month, finally gave up after I could not get any customer service. Unfortunately the Tucows purchase was nonrefundable, so I had to proceed with what I knew would be a frustrating ordeal.
Two days after the Tucows purchase I received an order confirmation from Comodo, then the next day, Thursday, three days after the purchase, Comodo sent a validation request for documents. Well, I had taken that day off and didn’t read my email until Friday morning. And, of course, they had screwed up the order. I specifically ordered a personal certificate, but they were requesting business ID documents. Several hours later they replied to my order correction request, asking for personal ID documents. To verify my identity, I had to fax copies of my government issued ID, bank statement, and phone bill.
Several hours later I get an improperly worded (English as a second language) rejection letter which made absolutely no sense. I tried to call their offices, but they were closed by that time. And so began a frustrating game of email tag, waiting hours for a reply, each from a different person with obviously fake names ‘Mary, Ralph, Leo, James, Diana’. And each one repeating the same robotic reply ‘the WHOIS on the domain does not match. Please edit your WHOIS information.’ Well, that is simply not true, my name is all over the WHOIS, as is my address, phone number, and email. After the 6th time of asking for more specifics, ‘James’ finally answered my question on Saturday. The ‘Registrant’ name is RxKinetics (of course), which doesn’t match your name (obviously). No logical reason for rejection, all the WHOIS information matches, my address and my phone number. But they have a specific script they have to follow.
So, despite my reticence, I logged into my Network Solutions and attempted to change my account information. After clicking here and there and everywhere, I could not find any way to edit the ‘Registrant’ field on the web form. I called NS, and their office was closed (of course). So I filled out a support ticket. 24 hours later they replied with a form letter. I followed the instructions, but again, there was no edit button. I attempted to reply to the ticket, but they had closed the ticket with ‘resolved’. So, I opened a new ticket, explaining the problem (again) and reporting that their ‘solution’ did not work. The second time they sent the same exact form letter, only this time they pasted it twice into the reply. I guess because I asked the same question twice!? Finally, by 6AM on Monday, I was able to get a call through. Of course, it was someone with a thick accent. Between my tired brain and his thick accent, he was somehow able to deduce that I could not change the Registrant name without opening a new account, transferring all the information over, resetting the DNS, etc, etc. I said thanks but no thanks, no logical reason to change something that has caused no problems for 12 years.
So, back to Comodo I went. By this time, their call center was finally open, and, after navigating through a convoluted voice mail menu, I was finally able to talk to a human being (with a thick accent of course). This guy started out repeating the same script that I’d already heard a dozen times. And, he didn’t want to listen to reason and logic. I told him that I had just gotten off the phone with Network Solutions and that I was not going through the whole ordeal of creating a new account with them. Finally, he realized what I was saying, and said that I could fill out a Domain Authorization Letter. I kept him on the line until I was sure it was filled out correctly, then printed it, signed it, scanned it back in, and sent it.
By this point I’d been up for 24 hours and suffering with TBS (Tired Brain Syndrome). I didn’t look at the scan before I sent it to them. I had scanned it upside down, and sent them a blank form. What a comedy of errors. I resent it hours ago, still haven’t heard back from them. You see, they have to call me back and verify that I approved the use of my domain for my email to be used for my personal certificate.
