Varifying Credit card purchase

[McStill]

Hi,

I've tried to upgrade my freeforums site to here but got this email back from hostgator.

Hello,

Thank you for your order with HostGator.com!

In order for us to setup your account, we will need you to call in and verify your billing information.

If you are unable to call us, you can instead respond to this ticket with a scanned copy of a Photo ID such as a passport, or drivers license. In addition to a photo ID, please include a scanned copy of the credit card that was used in your account purchase (assuming you purchased a hosting account with a credit card). For security purposes you can mask off all the digits of the card number except for the last 4 digits.

Now Being in Australia phoning in isnt a good idea, and everything I've ever heard or read about the internet tells me that giving out drivers license and credit card info isnt good if you want to be safe from identity theft.

I buy through the internet often and have never been requested to do this before, so, is there any way for me to get this upgrade done without revealing so much personal information?

Cheers.

[striddy]

Originally Posted by McStill

Now Being in Australia phoning in isnt a good idea

Why not? HG is open 24 hours a day, so just call when you are ready.

If it's a cost issue, use Skype to call their toll free number. It's free.

There is much fraud in hosting, so HG has to be sure you are who you say. That's why they take precautions.

[GatorTimC]

Hello!

Unfortunately, there is a high rate of fraud in the web hosting industry, and we ask that you do this for both our security and yours. This is similar to providing ID when you make a credit card purchase at a retail outlet.

If you do not wish to send in documentation or call us, you can also reply back to the email or come into our live chat and request that we call you -- on our dime! Verifying your order over the phone requires only a few questions and a couple minutes of your time. We are happy to accommodate you in any way that we can.

I would also like to add that if you have an existing billing account with HostGator, you can bypass the verification process by adding new packages to your existing billing account instead of signing up for a completely new billing account. You can do so by logging in to your billing account at http://gbclient.hostgator.com and clicking on "Add New Package" under the "Hosting Packages" section. This method also does not require you to re-enter your contact and billing information.

Please let us know if you have any additional questions or concerns!

[McStill]

Thanks TimC,

I've already sent in my details and everything is in order, I'm just waiting for my forum to be shifted to HG servers now, hopefully everything is in order and there are no further delays.

Cheers.