CIHOST are SPAMMERS, UGH!!!
By Steve Poland • May 25, 2007
Update: Only took 3 years, but they finally replied — threatening me to stop defaming them and remove their email addresses. I removed the email addresses, but it’s my first amendment right to speak my mind about my experiences — and they are the ones breaking the law by not being compliant with the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. Note: This post is only my experience — don’t base a decision on whether to use them or not on my experience, you too can try signing up for their service and see whether you get spammed. Further note: Once CIHOST shows me that they are compliant with the CAN-SPAM Act, I’ll re-update this post and remove this entire update to say, “Update: CIHOST is now CAN-SPAM compliant. Make sure your business is too”.
Lesson to any business owner: Have an unsubscribe link in your email blasts. If someone doesn’t want your mailings, let them go — or else blog posts like this can happen. If you keep mailing them against their will — you’ll no longer be at 0 dissatisfied customers, you’ll be at 1 dissatisfied customer with all of their friends, family, etc, knowing all about their horrid experience with your business.
It is 2007, right? If you were in business for 10 years, which CIHOST apparently has been — wouldn’t you have an unsubscribe link in your spam emails? I have literally been trying for 3 years to get off their spam lists. I have emailed every possible generic email address I could think of.
Right now I have sent them a fax and an email to every person in management at their company — I’m hoping one of the 3 methods I’m assuming for their email syntax is correct.
I’m not going to copy the email I’m sending them — it’s not as bad as the last one I sent them, but it shows another side of me. I didn’t even know I had this other side — honestly, CIHOST has been the only ones to draw such hatred, such negativity, and such language out of me in my professional life.
I used CIHOST over 3 years ago. The service I believe was fine, but they will not let me go — they will not stop sending me emails, despite repeated requests. Despite emailing my account executive “Jeff R.” (jeffr@cihost.com) and despite emailing every email address I can possibly think of. I can’t believe they don’t have any unsubscribe link in their emails — that’s against the law. I’m no lawyer, but if I were, and if I had money to burn — I’d be suing them.
If I do get another email from them, I am taking them to court to stop the madness. I’m sure I’m not the only one — and someone has to step up.
Comments
3 Responses to “CIHOST are SPAMMERS, UGH!!!”
Got something to say?
Good luck. Getting off of lists is usually almost impossible. I used to work for a major, Austin based computer company (easy to guess) and once a customer was on the “email me great deals” list, it took an act of Congress to get them removed.
I am having a similar problem with the Xbox Live newsletter. In the email it says if I login to their website there is an option to not recieve emails. I did this but I am still getting them. I have also tried emailing various addresses, but nothing.
Now Gmail just classes it as junk.
In my opinion CI Host are one of the worst companies in the entire world.
Their service is terrible, they do not let you cancel accounts when they break their own SLA, they do not stop spamming you and use billing practices that are close to extorsion. They threaten to send in debt collecters when you change credit cards (because after 3 months of Emails, faxes, et-al they still wont cancel the monthly account).
I ended up complaining to the BBB, who i beleive have a long, long list of complaints on this company. They then backed down, before (mysteriously) adding me back onto their Email list a month later and demanding another $18.
It is apparent to me that even they know they have built the business around shocking service.