The release of the new top level domains (e.g. .guru and .careers) seems to have spawned another domain name scam, this time perpetrated by opportunists from the Far East. Many businesses have begun receiving emails over the past few days alerting them of attempts to register domain names that are similar to their own website address.
Initially the email seems to come from a reputable domain name provider, and warns that you need to take action to prevent potential problems from scammers trying to hijack your online reputation. After initial contact however, the ‘registrar’ will encourage you to register dozens of new domains ‘to avoid confusion or speculation’.
The scammers hope that by frightening trademark holders into thinking their intellectual property is in danger, they can push through these registrations. Should you proceed with the registration however, you will be charged well over the standard rate for the new domain names.
In many cases, the email is not even sent by a true registrar. Instead an opportunist will take your “order”, register the domains at cost, and then sell them on to you at a hugely inflated rate. There is also the chance that the list of supplied domain names are not really available at all so any money paid will be lost.
Your best bet when faced with one of these emails is to approach a known, reputable domain registrar like Broadband Cloud Solutions who will be able to assist in checking whether the domain names you want are actually available and completing the registration for you if so.
About Broadband Cloud Solutions
Our mission is to supply high quality internet solutions to individuals and businesses of all sizes. From traditional domain names and web hosting to cloud services such as Hosted desktop and LiveDrive, we offer essential services and products that are both affordable and good value for money. Please give us a call on 0141 585 6363 to speak with a member of our friendly team.
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