Verizon no longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
Justin46
Legend

Just received this email from Verizon:

_________________________________________________________

Dear Verizon Internet User:

As part of our ongoing enhancements to the online customer experience, Verizon continues to ensure security for our Internet customers.  As a result of this ongoing effort, Verizon Online is making modifications to the Internet access provided to you.  These modifications will occur on August 21, 2011.  For security reasons, Verizon will no longer allow users to FTP their HTML files to the personal web site Verizon offers. 

Verizon recommends that current FTP users download their files prior to August 21, 2011 to prevent any data loss. 

If you still wish to have a Verizon website, please go to our site builder tool available with Personal Webspace which can be found under My Services in My Verizon at:
 

http://my.verizon.com/central/vzc.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=pws_manageWebSpace#wlp_pws_manageWebS...

Remember, after August 21, 2011, you will not be able to use FTP for uploading your files.

Thanks for being a valued Verizon Online customer.  We encourage you to act now to protect your private information.

Sincerely,
Verizon Online
____________________________________________________________

Anybody here use FTP to manage the pages on their personal website? It appears they want us to use only the Site Builder; any clue what security reasons there would be for eliminating the use of FTP and forcing us to use Site Builder? No explanation in the email or on any web page I have found so far.

__________________________________
Justin
FiOS TV, Internet, and phone user
QIP7232, IMG 1.8, Build 02.54
Keller, TX 76248

Re: Verizon longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
tgraner
Enthusiast - Level 2

I received the same email. Wondering the same things. I use the iWeb page builder on my MAC to make my pages and then upload using FTP software (ClassicFTP).

Does this really mean that after that date I can't use it to upload or delete items??

Hmmmmmm. From what I saw on the Verizon site it looks like if you pay them $5.95 per month to get a bigger site you can have domain names AND use FTP. If that is the case I will probably just use Google or Yahoo.

Tom

Re: Verizon longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
Justin46
Legend

@tgraner wrote:

I received the same email. Wondering the same things. I use the iWeb page builder on my MAC to make my pages and then upload using FTP software (ClassicFTP).

Does this really mean that after that date I can't use it to upload or delete items??

That's the way I read it......

Hmmmmmm. From what I saw on the Verizon site it looks like if you pay them $5.95 per month to get a bigger site you can have domain names AND use FTP. If that is the case I will probably just use Google or Yahoo.

Ah, maybe you just broke the code, they simply want more money.....

Tom


The free sites are supposed to be for "personal" use, I wonder if lots of small companies, home businesses, etc, are maybe using the free option and Verizon just wants to get rid of them? I just can't see any "security" issue here, but what do I know.......

__________________________________
Justin
FiOS TV, Internet, and phone user
QIP7232, IMG 1.8, Build 02.54
Keller, TX 76248

0 Likes
Re: Verizon longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
mikeveris
Enthusiast - Level 1

I see no way to maintain my site without FTP.  The Sitebuilder doesn't even see my existing pages. My cable company's been looking to grab my landline business for years--looks like the last obstacle has been cleared if I can't figure out a way to make this work... 

Re: Verizon longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
devjoe
Enthusiast - Level 2

Ditto. I looked at their sitebuilder thing and it is completely unusable. Not only is it absurdly limited (only HTML pages in a few predefined templates, and a few image types) but half the few features provided don't even work.

Examples:

  • There is a section for site add-on files, but going there only tells me I don't have any, and doesn't provide me any way to add anything. Anybody know if there is some way to make this feature work as a replacement for FTPing externally created files onto my site?
  • I selected a "blank page" in the sitebuilder and ended up with some sort of template with a site title, page title, heading, subheading, and content space. Fair enough. I was able to edit the page title in this template, but trying to edit the heading or subheading brought me to an editing box somewhat like the one for these forums -- except that the one for these forums works, while this one was always grayed out. I could select various font options with buttons above the box, but the box itself is always grayed out and never lets me start typing anything.
Re: Verizon no longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
smith6612
Community Leader
Community Leader

If the Verizon web servers supported PHP, I could write a script to run as a PHP-based FTP Client that does not use FTP under the hood to transfer files to the server. Unfortunately they do not so there's no point in writing one up. For those in need of FTP access to manage their website, download the contents of your current site (if you don't already have a copy on your computer) before Verizon's cut-off date and move the files over to a Free Web Hosting company such as x10Hosting who will offer FTP indefinitely (since it's a core component of all web hosting). At least by moving off of the ISP hosting, you can switch ISPs if you ever do without worrying about your site's address changing or having to reupload files to another server.

By the way, I do help out over at x10 on my free time. Great company as a whole for what they offer, so definitely take a look at them.

Re: Verizon no longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
tns
Master - Level 2

Ditto.

Site builder can even build a halfway decent Photo Album.  So I have always built such seperately and updated my main page to connect to them.

Re: Verizon no longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
Scott_r1
Enthusiast - Level 3

Well, this topic is what I was looking for. Verizon's Sitebuilder seems to basically be the Sesame Street approach to web site building. If I can't use my own software and upload it, the personal webspace is useless.

Re: Verizon no longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
xcalibur4
Enthusiast - Level 2

I use my PERSONAL WEBSPACE to store pictures of items I sell on eBay....I wonder if I will be able to FTP these JPG files to my personal webspace ??

Re: Verizon no longer to allow users to use FTP to maintain their personal web site
wolfedman2
Enthusiast - Level 1

I'm also confused about this.  If we can't FTP, how are we to add content to the our personal web space?