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Protect Thy Good Name Did you ever ask the question: "Who owns my name?" Your domain name that is – better known as a URL or a web site. A recent, very real-life situation brought the significance of this to my attention. As the author of seventeen books in the 300 Incredible Things to Do on the Internet series, I list thousands of web sites in my books. Of course, with the "dot com" bust, many reputable sites have gone under. However, in a recent case, one of the largest accounting and consulting firms in the world allowed its trademarked name to be purchased by an unscrupulous pornography web site. Yes, the firm at one time owned the domain name, but due to lack of vigilance, the site was not properly re-registered and the domain went up for general sale. At this moment, your corporate domain name might be very vulnerable – not to a hacker, but to loss of ownership. To illustrate this situation, I ask this question: "When does your domain name come up for renewal?" I'll bet your answer is: "I don't know." And, "Who, in your organization, is in charge of renewing your domain name?" At this point, you might be asking the question: "Do we need to renew our domain name?" Well, the answer is "You'd better find out." When a domain name is registered, it is purchased for one to ten years. Approximately sixty-days prior to renewal, the original individual who registered the name will be sent an e-mail notification. If the e-mail address is no longer valid, your company will not have been reminded. Thus, if the name is not properly renewed by the expiration date, your domain is available to the general public, including those with less than reputable intentions. It's that simple. In your organization, this problem might be compounded because you own hundreds or thousands of domain names. Of course, it only takes the loss of one to cause a major problem for your company. In fact, your former web site name might be held hostage. The new, rightful owner may charge you an exorbitant fee to buy it back. Or, in the case of the accounting firm, could cause incredible embarrassment. Here are some recommendations. If possible, make sure you own the domain names that end in .com, .org and .net. To be really safe, you might want to invest in .edu and the new names .info, .biz, .ws, and .cc. The latter may be
overkill, however, it demonstrates the level of confusion in the "dot com" world. Make sure you visit www.register.com and ascertain the following: the expiration date of your current registration and the contact
people in your organization. If any of the information is incorrect be sure to correct it. Keep a file of all your domain names, contact people and expiration dates. Ensure this file is passed on to whoever takes over the
position responsible for the domains. Above all, remember that your web site is an extension of your brand and you would not want to see that brand suffer from unscrupulous individuals on the Internet.
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© 2006 Online Internet Institute. |