

Just type `whois Microsoft.com` in your shell - janjongboom

That&#x27;s some interesting data...
======
hartator

      Whois Server Version 2.0
      
      Domain names in the .com and .net domains can now be registered
      with many different competing registrars. Go to http://www.internic.net
      for detailed information.
      
      MICROSOFT.COM.ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.IS.A.GREAT.COMPANY.ITREBAL.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.GET.ONE.MILLION.DOLLARS.AT.WWW.UNIMUNDI.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.IM.ELITE.WANNABE.TOO.WWW.PLUS613.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.ZZZZZZ.MORE.DETAILS.AT.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.ZZZZZ.GET.LAID.AT.WWW.SWINGINGCOMMUNITY.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.ZZZOMBIED.AND.HACKED.BY.WWW.WEB-HACK.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.ZZZ.IS.0WNED.AND.HAX0RED.BY.SUB7.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.WILL.BE.SLAPPED.IN.THE.FACE.BY.MY.BLUE.VEINED.SPANNER.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.WILL.BE.BEATEN.WITH.MY.SPANNER.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.WAREZ.AT.TOPLIST.GULLI.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.THIS.IS.A.TEST.INETLIBRARY.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.SOFTWARE.IS.NOT.USED.AT.REG.RU
      MICROSOFT.COM.SHOULD.GIVE.UP.BECAUSE.LINUXISGOD.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.RAWKZ.MUH.WERLD.MENTALFLOSS.CA
      MICROSOFT.COM.MORE.INFO.AT.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.MATCHES.THIS.STRING.AT.KEYSIGNERS.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.MAKES.RICKARD.DRINK.SAMBUCA.0800CARRENTAL.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.LOVES.ME.KOSMAL.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.LIVES.AT.SHAUNEWING.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.KNOWS.THAT.THE.BEST.WEB.HOSTING.IS.NASHHOST.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.IS.POWERED.BY.MIKROTIKA.V.OBSHTEJITIETO.OT.IBEKYAROV.UNIX-BG.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.IS.NOT.YEPPA.ORG
      MICROSOFT.COM.IS.NOT.HOSTED.BY.ACTIVEDOMAINDNS.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.IS.IN.BED.WITH.CURTYV.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.IS.HOSTED.ON.PROFITHOSTING.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.IS.A.STEAMING.HEAP.OF.FUCKING-BULLSHIT.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.IS.A.MESS.TIMPORTER.CO.UK
      MICROSOFT.COM.HAS.A.PRESENT.COMING.FROM.HUGHESMISSILES.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.FILLS.ME.WITH.BELLIGERENCE.NET
      MICROSOFT.COM.CAN.GO.FUCK.ITSELF.AT.SECZY.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM.ARE.GODDAMN.PIGFUCKERS.NET.NS-NOT-IN-SERVICE.COM
      MICROSOFT.COM
      
      To single out one record, look it up with "xxx", where xxx is one of the
      of the records displayed above. If the records are the same, look them up
      with "=xxx" to receive a full display for each record.

~~~
DarkStar851
Weird... MICROSOFT.COM.IS.A.STEAMING.HEAP.OF.FUCKING-BULLSHIT.NET,
A.STEAMING.HEAP.OF.FUCKING-BULLSHIT.NET won't resolve. The rest of it does
fine.. com.a.steaming.heap.of.fucking-bullshit.net included.

How is it jumping from steaming. to com.a.steaming. ??

------
mattzito
This is because under the Verisign GRS, name servers for second level domains
also get entries created. So, you can create a Whois entry for an arbitrarily
named server, like ycombinator.com.paulgraham.have.mychildren.com, and it will
show up.

I haven't been involved in Whois and tld stuff in a while, but back in the
day, these host Whois records were allowed because the gtld servers needed
glue for domain names - after all, if your domain name is ycombinator.com and
your name server is ns1.ycombinator.com, how can a resolver recurse to find
that, unless te gtld servers also have an A record for that label/object?

So, you could just go create arbitrary A records at the gtld level, which
would cause a corresponding Whois entry to be created. Hilarity for all
involved.

------
jalada
Interesting. Can someone explain what is happening here?

~~~
janjongboom
I believe that whois does a wildcard search for all domains known to start
with microsoft.com, and some funny people registered subdomains under their
own domains that start with microsoft.com. But maybe I'm wrong :-)

~~~
mappu
OK. Next question - why does the verisign whois server know about arbitarily
nested subdomains, instead of only top-level registrations?

~~~
mattzito
Take a look at my response upthread - basically, they're not sub domains,
they're arbitrarily registered name server entries to provide glue to other
lookups. The Whois record is just the side effect

------
sparticvs
If you just want microsoft's whois, do this

whois microsoft.com.

The . at the end tells the whois server, relative to root, no wildcard
matching.

~~~
lcedp

        % whois microsoft.com.
        No whois server is known for this kind of object.

~~~
joeblau

        whois 'domain microsoft.com'

------
jpswade
Alternatively telnet whois.verisign-grs.com 43, then type
microsoft.com[enter].

If you want a wildcard match, simply do =microsoft.com[enter].

You get similar results for google.com too :)

~~~
apapli
IBM's is quite funny too:

IBM.COM.X.SERIES.SERVER.SUCKS.A.LOT.BAOZUITUN.NET IBM.COM.IS.TOLL.JUKE-
CLUB.COM IBM.COM.DO.NOT.BUY.IBM.SERVERS.IT.WILL.REBOOT.A.LOT.BAOZUITUN.NET
IBM.COM.CN IBM.COM

------
bennyg

      APPLE.COM.ZON.COM
      APPLE.COM.WWW.ZON.COM
      APPLE.COM.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM
      APPLE.COM.WAS.PWNED.BY.M1CROSOFT.COM
      APPLE.COM.MORE.INFO.AT.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM
      APPLE.COM.IS.OWN3D.BY.NAKEDJER.COM
      APPLE.COM.IS.0WN3D.BY.GULLI.COM
      APPLE.COM.DENIS.DA.DOIDE.DA.PIEM.UNIX-BG.COM
      APPLE.COM.BEYONDWHOIS.COM
      APPLE.COM.AT.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM
      APPLE.COM
    

A lot more sane on the Apple front so far.

------
supercoder
Similar stuff can be seen with google.com, apple.com, Facebook.com and no
doubt a bunch more of large sites.

------
icedchai
welcome to 1995.

~~~
drharris
In high school I had friends convinced I'd hacked Microsoft using this trick
when they saw my IRC handle on a whois.

------
suyash
whois: connect(): Network is unreachable

\- Maybe because I'm in office?

------
zphds
Now try `whois google.com` :)

~~~
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