Domain News

Pool.com has just added the .DE ccTLD to their backorder services. Their site currently lists about 1,600 .de domains that will be expiring as of January 23rd.

It appears that the list only contains names that are in “TRANSIT” state at this point, which means that the registrar has handed the domains back to the registry after the original owner did not renew the names. For domains that are in TRANSIT,  the registry operator DENIC will try to invoice the registrant directly at a higher rate and delete the domain if the registrant does not respond - so this state could be loosely compared to the redemption period for other domains.

In order to see the list of Domains Pool.com will be offering for backorder, either download their full list of upcoming domains, or go to the “Deleting Domains” page, check the .DE TLD on the bottom left and click on search. Since none of them are expiring within the next 5 days, you will have to click on “View All Domains” on the following screen.

Only few registries actually publish a list of expiring domains and DENIC does not publish an official list.

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Help plan DomainConvergence 2009, participate in the survey.

Original post by Frank Michlick

Starting in December 2008, DENIC, the .de registry operator will start offering authorization codes for domain transfers within their ccTLD. Initially the new functionality will co-exist with the old asynchronous system, a date for phasing the old system out was not announced.

[via netdynamic (German), DENIC press release (German)]

Camera.co.uk , Saws.com , Medicinas.com , Coed.com - All For Sale at Aftermarket.com Online Domain Auction November 20th . Click here to register for the auction.

Original post by Frank Michlick

Online banking is safer than ever in Brazil thanks to a new second-level domain being used by financial institutions within the country to provide safe transactions online. .B.BR offers vastly improved online security for over 30 million people that use online banking in Brazil - an area that accounts for 17% of the total banking transactions of the country.

The extension, already being used by eBradesco, will only be available for the banks that guarantee major levels of protection against common frauds such as phishing. The registry will be using DNSSEC to validate the authenticity of websites and allow for safer transactions by digitally signing the DNS information.

[via email from Juan Enrique Sanchez, President of NameAction.com]

Original post by Chad Kettner

Qinetics, a registry solution provider in Malaysia, announced on Sunday that they have been awarded the contract to manage as consultants to develop policy and procedures for the .OM ccTLD for the country of Oman.  The entire company press release can be read at the end of the post.

The ccTLD .OM is one of three highly desirable ccTLDs because of the typo traffic that spills over to these extension by way of internet users leaving off a letter when typing the popular GTLD .COM.  The traffic that would come to any domain with this extension by mistake could be sent to a search engine landing page. For example, say a registrant were to purchase the domain name Facebook.om.  From the sheer volume of traffic that Facebook.com receives, it is natural that thousands of users will leave off the “C” in .com every day and it can be assumed many of those users will click or search on whatever page they land on.

Other ccTLDs that benefit from this .COM typo leak include .CO and .CM.  Columbia controls the .CO extension and does not currently have .CO domain names wild-carding. The second extension is .CM which is the ccTLD for the country of Cameroon.  The success behind the wild-carding of that countries traffic was talked about in a Business2.0 article about Kevin Ham.  Ham stated that the traffic through that channel was “in the ballpark” of 8 million unique visitors per month.

Since that article, many of the most popular .CM domain names have apparently switched ownership or have been diverted from the original Agoga.com lander.  Domains such as facebook.cm and yahoo.cm go to a viralvideos.org lander.  CNN.cm or ABC.cm goes to a domainsponsor lander and Google.cm goes to an Eharmony landing page.  It can be assumed that these other players jumped in after reading the story.   As John Berryhill put it, “As soon as it started happening, there was a huge sense of ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’”

It isn’t clear from this announcement whether the operators of the .OM registry will open up registrations to non-residents, auction domain names, or even operate a wild-carding similar to the .CM registry operations. What is clear is that this registry operation will have a host of people knocking on their door soon including many attorneys.

Good luck Qinetics. Good luck domainers.

---

PRESS RELEASEKUALA LUMPUR**, Malaysia, October 6th, 2008* — Qinetics Solutions Berhad (Qinetics), a leading Registry system provider, announced today that it has been awarded the tender by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) of Oman to provide consultancy services to develop the domain name policy framework for Oman.

Each country or autonomous territory has a 2-letter country code that represents its “Top Level Domain (TLD)” under which Internet domain names can be assigned. For Oman, the country code is ‘.om’.

TRA, the body in Oman that regulates the telecommunication sector of the Sultanate of Oman is in the process of taking over the function of managing the ‘.om’ TLD from the current incumbent ‘.om’ manager Omantel.

“TRA is committed to implement a fair, efficient and effective world-class framework for the ‘.om’ TLD. A consultancy is thus requested to review the domain name environment for the ‘.om’ TLD taking into account the local and cultural values of the country.” said Eng. Naashiah S. Al-Kharusi, TRA Board Member.

“TRA decided to award the tender to Qinetics who shall draft the necessary regulations and policy framework documents as required for implementation of a professional .om TLD administration.”

The tender require Qinetics to provide a comprehensive consultancy service spanning areas of Administrative Policy Framework, Domain Name Policy Framework and Industry Model Framework.

Among other things, Qinetics will advise TRA on the setup of the entity to manage ‘.om’, registrar accreditation framework and domain name policies such as domain name eligibility and allocation policy, WHOIS policy, reserved names policy, complaints policy, domain life cycle policy and domain name dispute resolution policy.

“We are indeed honored to be selected by TRA for this consultancy. Our dedicated consultants within the RegistryASP team have years of practical experiences running ccTLD registry operations, registry systems and also registrar systems so we are intimately familiar with all aspects of domain name business. We are confident that we will be able to provide sound advices to TRA on the best domain name management framework for Oman,“ said TK Tan, CEO of Qinetics.
About TRA, Oman
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) was established in 2002, to liberalize and promote the telecommunications services in the Sultanate of Oman under the Telecommunications Act which was issued under the Royal Decree No. 30/2002. TRA is committed to develop the telecommunications sector in the Sultanate by regulating and maintaining the telecom services, promoting the interest of telecommunications services providers and beneficiaries, and ensuring that consumers receive world class standard quality telecommunications services, with range of choices within reasonable limits at affordable prices. * *The Authority’s policies and regulations is aimed at the development of infrastructure and the attraction of foreign investment into the sector to further promote the Sultanate’s economy and increasing employment prospects for Omani citizens. Website: http://www.tra.gov.om

About Qinetics Solutions Berhad
Qinetics, a regional company headquartered in Malaysia, focuses on Registry and Registrar service, consultancy and solution, software development and IT services. Qinetics is a MSC (Multimedia Super Corridor) pioneer-status company in Malaysia for its merits in R&D. Qinetics’ subsidiary, Web Commerce Communications Limited (WEBCC – www.webnic.cc) is the largest ICANN Accredited Registrar in South East Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan (source: Frost & Sullivan), serving over 400,000 domain names in over 40 domain name extensions. Qinetics has over 5 years of experience in the development of RegistryASP SRS (www.registryASP.com) – its flagship Shared Registry-Registrar System (SRS) solutions that powers country code Top Level Domains (ccTLDs) such as .hk (Hong Kong), .sg (Singapore), .cd (Democratic Republic of Congo), .my (Malaysia) and .gw (Guinea Bissau). Website: http://www.qinetics.net

Brought to you by Arthritis

Qinetics, a registry solution provider in Malaysia, announced on Sunday that they have been awarded the contract to manage the .OM ccTLD for the country of Oman.  The entire company press release can be read at the end of the post.

The ccTLD .OM is one of three highly desirable ccTLDs because of the typo traffic that spills over to these extension by way of internet users leaving off a letter when typing the popular GTLD .COM.  The traffic that would come to any domain with this extension by mistake could be sent to a search engine landing page. For example, say a registrant were to purchase the domain name Facebook.om.  From the sheer volume of traffic that Facebook.com receives, it is natural that thousands of users will leave off the “C” in .com every day and it can be assumed many of those users will click or search on whatever page they land on.

Other ccTLDs that benefit from this .COM typo leak include .CO and .CM.  Columbia controls the .CO extension and does not currently have .CO domain names wild-carding. The second extension is .CM which is the ccTLD for the country of Cameroon.  The success behind the wild-carding of that countries traffic was talked about in a Business2.0 article about Kevin Ham.  Ham stated that the traffic through that channel was “in the ballpark” of 8 million unique visitors per month.

Since that article, many of the most popular .CM domain names have apparently switched ownership or have been diverted from the original Agoga.com lander.  Domains such as facebook.cm and yahoo.cm go to a viralvideos.org lander.  CNN.cm or ABC.cm goes to a domainsponsor lander and Google.cm goes to an Eharmony landing page.  It can be assumed that these other players jumped in after reading the story.   As John Berryhill put it, “As soon as it started happening, there was a huge sense of ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’”

It isn’t clear from this announcement wether the operators of the .OM registry will open up registrations to non-residents, auction domain names, or even operate a wild-carding similar to the .CM registry operations. What is clear is that this registry operation will have a host of people knocking on their door soon including many attornies.

Good luck Qinetics. Good luck domainers.

---

PRESS RELEASE

KUALA LUMPUR**, Malaysia, October 6th, 2008* — Qinetics Solutions Berhad (Qinetics), a leading Registry system provider, announced today that it has been awarded the tender by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) of Oman to provide consultancy services to develop the domain name policy framework for Oman.

Each country or autonomous territory has a 2-letter country code that represents its “Top Level Domain (TLD)” under which Internet domain names can be assigned. For Oman, the country code is ‘.om’.

TRA, the body in Oman that regulates the telecommunication sector of the Sultanate of Oman is in the process of taking over the function of managing the ‘.om’ TLD from the current incumbent ‘.om’ manager Omantel.

“TRA is committed to implement a fair, efficient and effective world-class framework for the ‘.om’ TLD. A consultancy is thus requested to review the domain name environment for the ‘.om’ TLD taking into account the local and cultural values of the country.” said Eng. Naashiah S. Al-Kharusi, TRA Board Member.

“TRA decided to award the tender to Qinetics who shall draft the necessary regulations and policy framework documents as required for implementation of a professional .om TLD administration.”

The tender require Qinetics to provide a comprehensive consultancy service spanning areas of Administrative Policy Framework, Domain Name Policy Framework and Industry Model Framework.

Among other things, Qinetics will advise TRA on the setup of the entity to manage ‘.om’, registrar accreditation framework and domain name policies such as domain name eligibility and allocation policy, WHOIS policy, reserved names policy, complaints policy, domain life cycle policy and domain name dispute resolution policy.

“We are indeed honored to be selected by TRA for this consultancy. Our dedicated consultants within the RegistryASP team have years of practical experiences running ccTLD registry operations, registry systems and also registrar systems so we are intimately familiar with all aspects of domain name business. We are confident that we will be able to provide sound advices to TRA on the best domain name management framework for Oman,“ said TK Tan, CEO of Qinetics.
About TRA, Oman
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) was established in 2002, to liberalize and promote the telecommunications services in the Sultanate of Oman under the Telecommunications Act which was issued under the Royal Decree No. 30/2002. TRA is committed to develop the telecommunications sector in the Sultanate by regulating and maintaining the telecom services, promoting the interest of telecommunications services providers and beneficiaries, and ensuring that consumers receive world class standard quality telecommunications services, with range of choices within reasonable limits at affordable prices. * *The Authority’s policies and regulations is aimed at the development of infrastructure and the attraction of foreign investment into the sector to further promote the Sultanate’s economy and increasing employment prospects for Omani citizens. Website: http://www.tra.gov.om

About Qinetics Solutions Berhad
Qinetics, a regional company headquartered in Malaysia, focuses on Registry and Registrar service, consultancy and solution, software development and IT services. Qinetics is a MSC (Multimedia Super Corridor) pioneer-status company in Malaysia for its merits in R&ampD. Qinetics’ subsidiary, Web Commerce Communications Limited (WEBCC – www.webnic.cc) is the largest ICANN Accredited Registrar in South East Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan (source: Frost & Sullivan), serving over 400,000 domain names in over 40 domain name extensions. Qinetics has over 5 years of experience in the development of RegistryASP SRS (www.registryASP.com) – its flagship Shared Registry-Registrar System (SRS) solutions that powers country code Top Level Domains (ccTLDs) such as .hk (Hong Kong), .sg (Singapore), .cd (Democratic Republic of Congo), .my (Malaysia) and .gw (Guinea Bissau). Website: http://www.qinetics.net

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Domain Convergence, October 6-8, 2008, Niagara Falls

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Original post by Adam Strong

For a limited time, you can invest in Mexican domain names for a discounted price! Registry .MX is offering a special September rate for all new registrations - and the longer you register the domain, the more you’ll save. The best deal works out to only $6 USD/year for 5 years!

Mexico’s ccTLD consist of third-level names below second-level names. If you live outside Mexico, you can only register a .com.mx domain name. However, if you meet certain requirements you could also register a .net.mx, .org.mx, or a .edu.mx domain name at this price.

Visit Registry .MX to take advantage of this special offer. If you’re having trouble reading Spanish, you might want to use the Babelfish translator along the way.

Disclaimer: The .MX registry is an advertiser with Domain Name News.

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Domain Convergence, October 6-8, 2008, Niagara Falls

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Original post by Chad Kettner

The University of British Columbia has honored John Demco, a former UBC computing facilities manager, for creating the .ca domain registry that gave Canada an online identity. The Demco Student Learning Centre in the Dept. of Computer Sciences will be named on his behalf.

Demco started the .ca registry in 1987 and managed a group of volunteers to take care of domain applications - registering nearly 100,000 .ca domain names before CIRA, a not-for-profit corporation, took full control of the process.

“John administered the dot-ca registry using UBC facilities and equipment for more than 10 years and played an important role in the establishment and governance of the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA),” said Computer Science head Bill Aiello. “His vision and dedication is an inspiration to students, faculty and staff at Computer Science and UBC.”

In April 2008, the number of .ca domains surpassed one million.

[via CIRA]

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Original post by Chad Kettner

I’ve spent the last three months in Argentina, traveling and exploring the country - north, east, west, and south - all covered. Beyond the “definitely visit this country it kicks ass and people are super-nice” there was some interesting internet usage as compared to the US:

• ccTLDs are everywhere. I walk past random hardware stores that use .com.ar. I have not seen a single .com mentioned anywhere, but I’ve seen at least a thousand .ar domains (be it tourist attractions, hotels, realtors, retail stores, or travel companies). On top of this, most sites are only in Spanish - a few that cater exclusively to foreigners (eg realtors) have English versions, but they still use .com.ar as their domain.
• Wifi is everywhere. At least 80% of cafes and restaurants (unexpected) have wifi. Free wifi. Finding an internet connection is not hard.
• Online ordering is very common. Ice cream delivery. Wine delivery. Grocery delivery. Pizza delivery. You just put in your information, what you want, and order away. No need to pay until the order actually arrives.
• Savvy companies are using generics. A large Indian restaurant here uses Tandoor.com.ar (kind of cooking style). A popular Japanese delivery joint uses Sushi.com.ar. Just like .com some people understand the value of the generic domain.
• The computer is not indispensible. This is likely the hardest point for people to get - for me (and likely you), the computer is an everyday part of your life. It isn’t for most people here. People actually live fine without the internet

Just a few things to munch on.

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Visit our Calendar of Domain Industry Events.

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Original post by AhmedF

The Montenegrin ccTLD, .me, is off to a great start with over 30,000 domain name applications to date. The country’s extension - whose slogan is “.Me is about YOU!” - holds a lot of value due to the potential for personalization.

It is certain that buy.me, fly.me, play.me, and some adult possibilities have drawn large amounts of interest. Open registration will begin on July 17, 2008, and all available domain names will be sold on a first-come, first served basis.

[via The Montenegro Times]

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Domain Convergence, October 6-8, 2008, Niagara Falls

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Original post by Chad Kettner

Spain’s ccTLD, .es, has passed the one million mark for total domain registrations. This milestone was made possible due to the liberalisation of the registration rules, which happened two years ago.

For the first time ever, in 2007, the country saw more .es domains registered than .com’s.

[via Domain Pulse]

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Domain Convergence, October 6-8, 2008, Niagara Falls

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Original post by Chad Kettner

The second MyID .CA domain auction starts today at 1pm EDT and will run until June 12th. The auction features 101 .CA domains. In the first auction 24 (out of a total of 77) names were sold for a total of $158,000.00 CAD.  Also Pool.com will start the premium auction for betting.ca today.

The full list of domains for the upcoming auction after the break.

Here is the full list of .ca domains to be auctioned in alphabetical order with their reserve range:

1. AdventureCanada.ca ($5001 - $10000)
2. Amazed.ca ($1001 - $2500)
3. ArchitectureJob.ca ($1001 - $2500)
4. BabyUltrasound.ca ($251 - $500)
5. Bass.ca ($2501 - $5000)
6. bcHockey.ca ($1001 - $2500)
7. Bite.ca ($2501 - $5000)
8. Bond.ca (more than $10000)
9. CalgarySingles.ca ($1001 - $2500)
10. CanadianParent.ca ($501 - $1000)
11. CanadianTeen.ca ($501 - $1000)
12. CanadianTravelInsurance.ca ($1001 - $2500)
13. Caramel.ca ($1001 - $2500)
14. CareerShow.ca ($2501 - $5000)
15. CareersOnline.ca ($2501 - $5000)
16. Catholics.ca ($1001 - $2500)
17. CheapTalk.ca ($251 - $500)
18. Cindy.ca ($2501 - $5000)
19. Classes.ca ($2501 - $5000)
20. ComputerForum.ca ($2 - $100)
21. DailyStocks.ca ($501 - $1000)
22. DesignerBrands.ca ($501 - $1000)
23. Desir.ca ($1001 - $2500)
24. Dialup.ca ($1001 - $2500)
25. Diplomas.ca ($2501 - $5000)
26. Enhancement(s).ca ($501 - $1000)
27. eWealth.ca ($501 - $1000)
28. fiduciaire.ca ($251 - $500)
29. FinanceCareer.ca ($501 - $1000)
30. Fines.ca ($2501 - $5000)
31. FitSingles.ca ($1001 - $2500)
32. FlamesForum.ca ($2 - $100)
33. FloorTile.ca ($501 - $1000)
34. FreeGifts.ca ($1001 - $2500)
35. Friandises.ca ($251 - $500)
36. Gamble.ca (more than $10000)
37. GayWeddings.ca ($1001 - $2500)
38. HardwareStores.ca ($1001 - $2500)
39. HomeEquities.ca ($2501 - $5000)
40. HumanResourcesJobs.ca ($251 - $500)
41. iAttorneys.ca ($501 - $1000)
42. iLoveClassifieds.ca ($2 - $100)
43. InternalMedicine.ca ($101 - $250)
44. InternetAccess.ca ($5001 - $10000)
45. Interview.ca (more than $10000)
46. Investigations.ca ($2501 - $5000)
47. InvestmentBanks.ca ($1001 - $2500)
48. iSports.ca ($2501 - $5000)
49. iTourist.ca ($251 - $500)
50. Ivonne.ca ($251 - $500)
51. JobTips.ca ($1001 - $2500)
52. JobTV.ca (more than $10000)
53. Joueurs.ca ($251 - $500)
54. L1.ca ($501 - $1000)
55. LandscapingJobs.ca ($1001 - $2500)
56. LasikEye(s).ca ($2501 - $5000)
57. LeafsForum.ca ($2 - $100)
58. LegalConsultant(s).ca ($1001 - $2500)
59. LiveAuction.ca ($1001 - $2500)
60. LogoWear.ca ($2 - $100)
61. LowFare.ca ($2501 - $5000)
62. Macau.ca ($2501 - $5000)
63. MakeLove.ca ($501 - $1000)
64. Manicure.ca ($1001 - $2500)
65. MBAonline.ca ($2501 - $5000)
66. MobileSPA.ca ($251 - $500)
67. moneyadvice.ca ($251 - $500)
68. MontrealDentist.ca ($2501 - $5000)
69. MontrealJob.ca ($501 - $1000)
70. MortgagesOnline.ca ($2501 - $5000)
71. MOVES.ca ($2501 - $5000)
72. MovieChannel.ca ($1001 - $2500)
73. MultimediaJobs.ca ($501 - $1000)
74. OilersForum.ca ($2 - $100)
75. OnlineBets.ca ($251 - $500)
76. OnlineSingles.ca ($2501 - $5000)
77. OntarioCondos.ca ($501 - $1000)
78. OttawaSearch.ca ($101 - $250)
79. PainClinic.ca ($0 - $1)
80. PharmaceuticalJob.ca ($1001 - $2500)
81. PhotographyJobs.ca ($501 - $1000)
82. PowerBoat.ca ($1001 - $2500)
83. Providers.ca ($1001 - $2500)
84. QuebecTravel.ca ($1001 - $2500)
85. ReadyMixConcrete.ca ($251 - $500)
86. SensForum.ca ($2 - $100)
87. StarterHome(s).ca ($2501 - $5000)
88. StockTips.ca ($1001 - $2500)
89. StockTraders.ca ($1001 - $2500)
90. SummerSchool.ca ($0 - $1)
91. TennisBracelet.ca ($1001 - $2500)
92. TicketReserve.ca ($2 - $100)
93. Tiz.ca ($101 - $250)
94. TorontoHotline.ca ($2501 - $5000)
95. tribu.ca ($501 - $1000)
96. UVM.ca ($101 - $250)
97. VP.ca (more than $10000)
98. WebsiteHosting.ca ($5001 - $10000)
99. WineTours.ca ($2501 - $5000)
100. WritingJobs.ca ($501 - $1000)
101. XZ.ca ($2501 - $5000)

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Domain Convergence, October 6-8, 2008, Niagara Falls

Original post by Frank Michlick

Anti-virus software maker McAfee released their second “Mapping the Mal Web” (PDF) report today. The McAfee report attempts to map and identify the specific domain names where malicious websites reside. This is the second year for the report. In the 2007 report, the .tk extension was reported to have the highest number of malicious websites with over . This year Hong Kong domain name extension .hk takes away the title with 19.2% , followed closely by China’s .cn with 11.8%.  Within the generic domain name extensions (gTLDs) .info ranked in with 11.7% of all sites ending in .info posing a security threat. The second rank in gTLDs went to .net with 6%. The report claims that a little under 5% of .com domain names were found to be risky. McAfee also identified the domains with the least amount of risk reside in the .gov, .jp and .au extensions.
The newest report specifically points to .hk and .cn domain names as having a substantially higher percentage of malicious websites. In the 2007 report, McAfee had not pointed to those extensions as having such high percentages.

Shane Keats, research analyst for McAfee and lead author of the report, said the increase in dangerous sites registered under the “.hk” and “.cn” domains over last year’s report was caused in part by better data collection on McAfee’s part on those domains and by apparent security lapses in some registrar companies’ processes for registering addresses.

The 2007 report claimed the .tk extension to have one of the highest percentages (10.1%). After the McAfee report was released, Dot TK, operators of the registry for Tokelau, implemented changes geared toward the reduction of these malicious sites. The .tk extension dropped considerably to #28 this year. Dot TK faced a 10% decline in registrations and a backlash from adveritsers running ads on .tk landing pages. The domain business reportedly accounts for a “double digit” percentage of the GDP of Tokelau. One could assume that the reduction in domain registrations that .tk felt will now be seen at the .hk, .cn and .info domain registries. This news should come as a wake up call to these operators.

The high percentage of malicious sites found on the .info extension may also be read as another “nail in the coffin” for the gTLD. The McAfee report follows on the heels of the news earlier last week that Google was dropping .info domains from search listings. All of this bad news can’t be sitting well for the .info registry or anyone heavily invested in .info domain names.

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Domain Convergence, October 6-8, 2008, Niagara Falls

Original post by Adam Strong

Anti-virus software maker McAfee released their second “Mapping the Mal Web” (PDF) report today. The McAfee report attempts to map and identify the specific domain names where malicious websites reside. This is the second year for the report. In the 2007 report, the .tk extension was reported to have the highest number of malicious websites with over . This year Hong Kong domain name extension .hk takes away the title with 19.2% , followed closely by China’s .cn with 11.8%.?? Within the generic domain name extensions (gTLDs) .info ranked in with 11.7% of all sites ending in .info posing a security threat. The second rank in gTLDs went to .net with 6%. The report claims that a little under 5% of .com domain names were found to be risky. McAfee also identified the domains with the least amount of risk reside in the .gov, .jp and .au extensions.
The newest report specifically points to .hk and .cn domain names as having a substantially higher percentage of malicious websites. In the 2007 report, McAfee had not pointed to those extensions as having such high percentages.

Shane Keats, research analyst for McAfee and lead author of the report, said the increase in dangerous sites registered under the “.hk” and “.cn” domains over last year’s report was caused in part by better data collection on McAfee’s part on those domains and by apparent security lapses in some registrar companies’ processes for registering addresses.

The 2007 report claimed the .tk extension to have one of the highest percentages (10.1%). After the McAfee report was released, Dot TK, operators of the registry for Tokelau, implemented changes geared toward the reduction of these malicious sites. The .tk extension dropped considerably to #28 this year. Dot TK faced a 10% decline in registrations and a backlash from adveritsers running ads on .tk landing pages. The domain business reportedly accounts for a “double digit” percentage of the GDP of Tokelau. One could assume that the reduction in domain registrations that .tk felt will now be seen at the .hk, .cn and .info domain registries. This news should come as a wake up call to these operators.

The high percentage of malicious sites found on the .info extension may also be read as another “nail in the coffin” for the gTLD. The McAfee report follows on the heels of the news earlier last week that Google was dropping .info domains from search listings. All of this bad news can’t be sitting well for the .info registry or anyone heavily invested in .info domain names.

(c) 2008 DomainNameNews.com

Domain Convergence, October 6-8, 2008, Niagara Falls

Original post by Adam Strong

A Spanish man is holding several government domain names for ransom until the Prime Minister agrees to correct the country’s “inequalities” in water supply and transfer water to all of the country’s drought stricken regions.

Following his recent re-election as Spain’s Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriquez Zapatero announced the creation of four new ministries websites. Unfortunately, the government hadn’t registered the domain names yet, allowing an unnamed blogger from south-east Spain to buy them.

The man, who is upset that the government is exclusively supplying extra water to the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, is now calling for the Prime Minister to supply water to all areas of Spain as was agreed upon in a European Union led initiative four years ago.

“Four years ago we had a great National Hydrological plan which would bring water to all the autonomous regions, the construction of which would be financed by entirely with EU funding,” the cybersquatter said on his blog. “Zapatero canceled that plan and now has agreed a project exclusively for Catalonia. Now all Spaniards must pay the bill to guarantee the Catalans have water.”

The man has promised to return the domain names only after the government corrects the water supply issues. The government, on the other hand, is taking action to retrieve the domain names and is in the process of setting up alternative websites until this has happened.

[via Telegraph.co.uk]

iBeginShare.attachTextLink(’share-tool-1209504343′, {title: ‘Spanish Government’s Domain Names Held Ransom’, link: ‘http://www.domainnamenews.com/cctlds/spanish-governments-domain-names-held-ransom/1551′, content: ‘http://www.domainnamenews.com/?ibegin_share_action=get_content&id=1551′});

Original post by Chad Kettner

A Spanish man is holding several government domain names for ransom until the Prime Minister agrees to correct the country’s “inequalities” in water supply and transfer water to all of the country’s drought stricken regions.

Following his recent re-election as Spain’s Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriquez Zapatero announced the creation of four new ministries websites. Unfortunately, the government hadn’t registered the domain names yet, allowing an unnamed blogger from south-east Spain to buy them.

The man, who is upset that the government is exclusively supplying extra water to the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, is now calling for the Prime Minister to supply water to all areas of Spain as was agreed upon in a European Union led initiative four years ago.

“Four years ago we had a great National Hydrological plan which would bring water to all the autonomous regions, the construction of which would be financed by entirely with EU funding,” the cybersquatter said on his blog. “Zapatero canceled that plan and now has agreed a project exclusively for Catalonia. Now all Spaniards must pay the bill to guarantee the Catalans have water.”

The man has promised to return the domain names only after the government corrects the water supply issues. The government, on the other hand, is taking action to retrieve the domain names and is in the process of setting up alternative websites until this has happened.

[via Telegraph.co.uk]

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Original post by Chad Kettner