The Belgian group Betcenter, one of the major providers of sports betting in our country, opted for Combell in 2017. “We have been growing intensively since 2013. In addition to retail, online is an important priority. Therefore, we were looking for a partner that could easily keep up with our growth rate”, according to Win Cox, online director at Betcenter Group. In the run-up to the World Cup 2018, an interactive app also provided a smooth introduction to online betting.

With over 120 employees and more than 100 sales outlets in Belgium, Betcenter has become a permanent fixture in the sports betting market.

DDoS attacks can cause major economic damage and completely shut down websites. What is a DDoS attack? How can you protect your website against DDoS attacks? And what does Combell provide for this?

What is a DDoS attack?

First, we need to explain what a DoS (Denial of Service) attack really entails. This is a situation where a computer system cannot provide the service that you are expecting as a user. This can happen due to an unintended error in the program, but usually these are situations where the access to servers, devices, services, networks, applications, or even specific transactions within applications is deliberately made impossible by e.g.

Does Google take the location of the servers of your web hosting into account? And if so, which location is the most suitable? And is hosting in Belgium a plus for your Google SEO?

What is the role of location with SEO?

When ranking the results of a search query, Google will always try to give the most relevant possible result, also geographically. Because it makes little sense to mention the address of the baker from Bruges who sells ‘rye bread with currants’ when the user who enters this query is located in Kempenland.

Combell strives to allow you to autonomously manage the components and features of your hosting as much as possible. That is why you can now make backups via your control panel and restore them yourself.

New feature: backup & restore

Obviously, Combell was already making backups but now you no longer have to request the helpdesk to restore a backup: you can do this yourself! Plus, you can very easily download the backup. This is useful when:

• You want to make a backup yourself to an external medium
• You want to set up a temporary database in a test environment
• You want to restore your production database with the backup that you have, even in the middle of the night!

However, since the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on 25 May 2018, it is no longer allowed to show personal data from individual persons. Not even when requesting WHOIS data. Data of companies and organisations, however, may still be mentioned, though to a limited extent. This has consequences when you transfer your domain name. So please pay extra attention!

Please pay attention when you transfer your domain name!

Why is this so important? Because when you transfer a domain name to Combell, the WHOIS data is no longer automatically transferred.

Phishing attacks are often carried out with very carefully crafted e-mails, which can hardly be distinguished from legitimate e-mails from a company. So well counterfeited, that despite your caution, you still fell for a phishing attempt. What now?

In our previous article, we explained what the intention is behind a phishing mail and how you can recognise a fake e-mail. If you nevertheless fell into a phishing trap, you must take measures immediately. Which ones depends on how the phishing was carried out and which data was compromised. This is a guideline.

A new extension will be launched on 8 May 2018. Do you develop or design applications? Then, you may have been waiting for this .app domain extension to be available for some time, because it makes it very easy for Internet users to understand what your website stands for. The popularity of this new domain extension is already huge and it will most probably become one of this year’s biggest hits. And it is precisely because of its current level of success that we are offering pre-registrations. Do not wait any longer, as the domain names with a .app extension will sell like hot cakes!

Making unsuspecting users believe they are dealing with a trustworthy entity in order to steal money or confidential information from them, or infect them with malware: this is, in a nutshell, what is meant by ‘phishing’. But what exactly lies behind this type of online scam? And how can you avoid falling into the trap of a phishing e-mail?

What is the purpose of a phishing e-mail?

Basically, cybercriminals increasingly make use of phishing techniques because it is much easier to get people to click on a link than breaking into their computers.

All registrants (i.e. the owners) of a .be domain name will soon receive an e-mail from registry operator DNS Belgium announcing changes to the terms of use for .be domain names. What does this change mean and what should you do?

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will take effect on 28 May 2018. This EU regulation will protect the privacy of European citizens by, inter alia, strictly regulating the way databases containing personal data are created. Further details are provided in our article “GDPR: what you should know as a Combell customer”.

Kadonation has grown from a student project into an all-round platform for group gifts, individual gift vouchers and crowdfunding as well. A solid track record of growth, expertly led by Combell.

Kadonation: gifts, donations, a community

The Kadonation concept is the brainchild of Fabrice Guillermin, who developed it as an eighteen-year-old together with two fellow students. The original principle was simple: combine together for a group gift under the motto “make something big out of lots of little things”. That could be a tangible gift you might purchase from one of the partner e-commerce stores (Fun, Coolblue, Zalando...), a unique experience (Bluebear, eKart, Superjump...) or a good cause.

Since 1 March 2018, the maximum validity period of SSL certificates has been reduced from 39 to a little more than 27 months. What exactly does this mean for you?

Under the pressure of various organisations (especially Google and Mozilla), the decision was taken to shorten this maximum validity period. This should help make the web more secure and develop sounder management in the sector.

Why do you need an SSL certificate?

An increasing number of websites are using the HTTPS protocol instead of the traditional HTTP protocol. This makes it possible to secure the communication with the user’s browser, and provides guarantees as to the identity of the owner of the domain name.

The SafeShops Awards were held for the second consecutive year. This competition is based on an honest evaluation by users themselves, which helps the participating web stores learn quite a few things about their own business – even if they do not win an award! A brief report…

The SafeShops initiative has been known for years for its contribution to the development of e-commerce in Belgium. Originally an initiative of three major web stores (Sunweb.be, Vente-Exclusive.com and Coolblue), SafeShops has now become a platform where web stores can share knowledge, experience and information.