Domain-Guides

While overall brand abuse continues to increase, the distribution of attacks is evolving over the past year. Cybersquatting continues to be the most common method observed with more than 380,000 exploits in the last quarter of 2007. This represents a 33 percent increase for the year. Using brand names as part of a domain name is an easy way to drive traffic through search engines, and since most common dictionary words are already used for domains, fraudsters and criminals continue to turn to brand names and trademarks when they register domains. We continue to observe sites that abuse popular children's brands and place offensive and adult content on the squatted domains.

The Internet has changed the world in astonishing ways—both good and bad—and all in the last 10 to 15 years. We marvel at the good: immediate access to even the most obscure information, free and secure worldwide person-to-person communication, and the ability to access almost any product or service with just the click of a mouse. But its mass appeal and reach combined with anonymity and complex, constantly evolving technologies also make the digital world an unsafe place. Criminals and hackers are wreaking havoc on increasing numbers of well-known brands for their own profit. These 'brandjackers' have fine-tuned the techniques of online marketing and are exploiting them to their advantage and at the expense of true brand owners. As a result, organizations face serious online threats to their reputations, customer relationships, and ultimately, their revenues...........