contractor threatening to explode my site

Hello,

We hired a group...Whom I will not mention to set up our Zen Cart, they did only about half the work and I am still doing the rest.
We have had words about them getting the rest of the part they agreed to finish and they are now threating me with a way they say they can shut the cart down with a "TIME OUT". They also it will destroy all our data when this time bomb hits.
I am willing to pay them if they finish what was agreed upon, however I do not belive they will do anymore work at this point.
I need to disable this "BOMB" and hire a better company for the rest of my project.
Please let me know if the "BOMB" is possible and how to disable if if you know how.
Thank for your help!

Jim

My first thought is why continue with them at all, if they are threatening that. Who are you hiring, the mob?

My second thought is that your post is some kind of a joke.

Best way to get rid of the "bomb" is to delete the cart and start over, preferrably on another account or even different host that they don't have access to.

BTW, what is so involved with your zencart that you cannot get it up yourself? Any link to take a look?

jimbo67a:

they are now threating me with a way they say they can shut the cart down with a "TIME OUT". They also it will destroy all our data when this time bomb hits.
< snip >
Please let me know if the "BOMB" is possible and how to disable if if you know how.

Yes, a 'bomb' is very possible.
That is the least of your problems though. I would assume that you've provided this mob with all of your account details (cPanel, FTP, MySQL, ZenCart, and probably even the DNS).

The 1st thing you need to do is change the passwords on ALL of these accounts.

The next thing to do is a full audit of your site to check they haven't uploaded any 'back-door' or data logging software. AS SPH has suggested, the easiest way to do this is to delete the cart and start over.

Also as SPH as stated, you will also be better to start afresh with a new account/server/host, especially if you are unsure about exactly what access you have provided them.

Simply put, they have you over a barrel. They have the ability to do you far more harm than any hacker could hope for.

Now having said that, I don't think I've ever come across any developer (or group) that has been out to deliberately upset and/or alienate their customers. Certainly not in the ZenCart scene, which suggests to me there is probably a lot more to this story than it appears, and perhaps you are at least partially to blame for the communication breakdown that has led to this horrid situation.

None of us here are going to be interested in the details (it is none of our concern), but whatever it was, try to avoid making the same mistakes with your next developer(s). Not saying it is/was your fault the breakdown occurred, but their livelihood depends on keeping their customers happy, and most will bend over backwards to resolve any issues.
Although not unheard of, your situation is pretty rare (in my experience).

Are you sure there is no way to resolve the situation with them?

Cheers
Rod

This is one BIG reason why the "Implementation Guide" that comes with Zen Cart (see the /docs/ folder) SPECIFICALLY advises that you NEVER give anyone your passwords. Instead, have them build all the necessary changes on a test site and give YOU the resultant code to inspect and implement.

And also another reason why you should always be making frequent regular backups of your site (files and database).

I understand about the password issue however I came into this project AFTER it had been started.
I am still learning Zen cart.
I have backed up my files but do not know how to do a whole site backup - Can you tell me how to do that?
Also, the passwords they had were temp passwords and have all been changed. So I have changed any way they might have to get into the site or sever already.
And the site was built on there servers before being uploaded to our.
A total backup solution would be great!

http://www.americanteledatastore.com/

Its not a joke - I have only just gotten involved after the project was started.
I am not yet that good at this cart building stuff but am learning pretty fast!

http://www.zen-cart.com/content.php?144-how-can-i-do-a-site-backup-or-use-phpmyadmin-for-database-backup

Site looks nice (I used that template in early days) and you have alot more products than I expected (your All Products is turned off).

Does the backlink at bottom take one to the people in question?

You have their state business id from their website. Perhaps a note to the BBB in their area.

In addition to the Zen Cart side of things, make sure you have control of your DNS settings/server/records and Registrar settings (technical contact, admin contact, etc.)