Before you open a new store: a 10-minute IP checklist

A short, repeatable checklist for vetting the IPs you are about to attach to a new store — before the first login, not after the first ban.

Why a checklist

Opening a store is a one-shot move: if the environment is wrong, you find out after the account is flagged, and the learning is expensive. A fixed checklist turns that gamble into a repeatable process.

The ten minutes

1. Batch all candidate IPs. Do not check them one by one — compare them side by side.
2. Read the ASN owner first. Any hosting company is out for store use, regardless of the label on the product.
3. Confirm the network type. ISP and mobile are plausible; datacenter is not.
4. Check the Tor list. A Tor exit is an instant no.
5. Look at the block, not just the IP. A single clean IP in a dirty /24 is a warning.
6. Compare location with the account's stated country. Mismatch creates its own risk.
7. Re-check the same IP after 24 hours. Roaming the range between sessions is a bad sign.
8. Test with a throwaway account first. Never the account that holds your revenue.
9. Log the result. Store the verdict, the date, and the ASN — you will need it when something changes.
10. Only then, bind it to the store. One change at a time, so you know what caused what.

What to do when it fails

Failing is normal and cheap here. Reject the batch, ask the provider for a replacement with the ASN shown, and re-run the same checklist. The point is not to find perfect IPs; it is to stop paying for wrong ones.