You receive an email warning that your website’s domain name is about to expire. Renew now, it says, or your website and email could stop working. The link opens a professional-looking page that already knows your domain name, displays your registrar and expiry date, and starts a countdown timer.
It feels urgent and personal, so it feels real.
The site, branded Renovarix, doesn’t renew domains. Instead, it pushes visitors through a series of pages that collect personal information and eventually payment details.
How the scam works
Domain names really do expire, and losing one can be a serious problem. For many people and businesses, a domain is more than a web address. It’s your brand, your email, your search rankings, and the name customers type in when they want to find you. If it lapses, your website and email can stop working. If someone else registers it before you get it back, recovery can be difficult or impossible. That’s a lot to lose, and scammers know it.
