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Domains do not simply “expire.” The process involves a few steps and understanding them can be important to understanding why there is an additional fee for renewals in certain circumstances. Domain expiration can be a frustrating experience. The advent of the “redemption period” has caused a lot of sticker shock to unwary domain owners when they seek to renew an expired domain. Understanding the process of domain expiration is a crucial first step in avoiding having to pay additional fees. Understand the steps in the process described will always be the same, but the amount of time each step takes is, with one exception, determined by the individual registrar. Only your registrar can provide the specific amount of time they will start sending renewal notices or keep a domain in hold status, so it is important to know your individual registrar’s policies. Step 1: Active Status Domains within their registration dates are generally on “active” status. Some domains may be in a “lock” status as well, either by the registry or the registrar. This means the details of the domain cannot be changed without the lock status being removed. This is generally a security measure to prevent a domain from being tampered with or transferred to another registrar without the owner’s approval. Active status means a domain is live and visible, depending on the status of the server hosting the site. At any point in its active life, a domain can be renewed for an additional term of one or more years for whatever the individual registrar’s going annual rate. At some point near the end of the current registration period renewal notices will be sent. The exact time is determined by the individual registrar and could be anytime from one to six months in advance of the expiration. The notices will be sent to the contact email on the domain. This is probably the number one cause of unwanted domain expiration, inaccurate contact information. Always make sure the contact information on the domain is up to date. Be aware that making changes to contact information with a hosting company will, in virtually all cases, not update the information on the domain. The contact information on a domain must be kept current via the domain’s registrar. Step 2: On-Hold The “registrar-hold” status occurs when the domain expires or shortly after, depending on the discretion of the actual registrar. Domains in the “hold” status will cease functioning and the site they reference will appear to be “down”, even though the webserver hosting them is likely up. Some registrars will provide a short grace period of active functioning after the domain expires and before placing it on hold. When a domain is on hold status, it can be renewed for the standard fee charged by the individual registrar. This is the last point at which renewal at the registrar’s normal rates is possible. Step 3: Redemption Period This is a more recent development, one created by ICANN, the Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers, ostensively to allow domain owners a “second chance” at renewing their domains and preventing their loss to other parties. Though useful, this “service” doesn’t come free. Like most elements of this timeline, the fee will vary from registrar to registrar, though it will generally be in excess of seventy dollars. Prices can rise up to $150 dollars or more at some registrars. The one difference here is the time period, which is always 30 days. The actual start date can be determined by the registrar, but once initiated, it will be 30 days, unless the customer chooses to pay the fee and redeem the domain. Step: 4: Pending Delete The final step prior to complete release of the domain for anyone to register at any registrar. Pending delete status follows the 30 day redemption period and lasts up to 5 days. There is no way to renew the domain once this status is reached, including paying the redemption fee. The only option is to wait for the domain to be purged and then re-register. There are various services from a variety of registrars that claim to offer “backorder” registration services for expiring domains, essentially attempting to pick them up as soon as they are released from the registry. Though none of them provide 100% guarantees of success, it may be worth considering if the domain is in danger of being picked up by other parties. Conclusions Always keep domain contact information up-to-date. This point cannot be overemphasized. Keeping that one rule in mind will help avoid having to deal with redemption fees for an important domain. Multi-year registrations are a double-edged sword, useful to lock down a domain for up to a decade, but also making it more likely contact information will change over that long period and requiring further vigilance on the part of the owner. The domain expiration process is not straightforward and can result in a hefty fee. If the domain is important, then it is important to keep track of it and make sure the registrar can provide notification of impending expirations. About the Author: Mr. Lester has served for 4 years as the webmaster for ApolloHosting.com and previously worked in the IT industry an additional 5 years, acquiring knowledge of hosting, design, and search engine optimization. Apollo Hosting provides website hosting, ecommerce hosting, vps hosting, and web design services to a wide range of customers. Established in 1999, Apollo prides itself on the highest levels of customer support. Note: These articles are provided for general interest and content purposes only, and should not be construed as “support” materials. Apollo Hosting does not guarantee the information contained within. All articles are free to reprint so long as they remain unchanged, the “About the Author” section remains, all hyperlinks are preserved, and the rel=”nofollow” tag is not added to the hyperlinks. Tags: domain, domain expiring, domain hosting, domain registration, expired domain, Web hosting
You go to work every day at the store you own, and one morning, your key to the door doesn’t work. You look in the window, and the display items have changed. A stranger is behind the counter. But when you call the police, they can’t do anything because the company papers now indicate that the store belongs to the stranger. The above scenario isn’t likely to happen with a bricks-and-mortar store. Because of insecurities in the domain registration system, however, information highwaymen could take over your online business. As with identity theft, domain thieves steal your identity — the identity used to register and configure your domain name. After that, your website, your email, your online business, and possibly your reputation are theirs. Domain names at risk of theft While theft is a risk with all domain names, domains most at risk are more valuable ones. Domains with dot com extensions have a higher resale value than domains with other extensions, and domains with high traffic or valuable keywords are also more likely to be targets. The motive behind domain hijacking is usually monetary, but it may be personal. If anyone wants to attack you, stealing your domain name is one way to do it. How domain theft happens When domain hijackers steal your domain, they gain access to the domain’s Whois records. They can modify the domain’s nameservers so that the domain points to a different server. They can also transfer the domain to a different registrar. Either way, site visitors will find themselves at the website of the domain hijacker instead of at your site. All domain email will go to or through the other server instead of to you. All you’ll have left is a website without public access because your domain isn’t pointing to it any more. How can this happen? Domain hijacking methods Domain hijackers send forged faxes to the domain registrar, impersonating the registrants. Registrar non-action The gaining registrar (the registrar that the domain is transferred to) doesn’t obtain approval from the domain name registrant or administrative contact as required by ICANN Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy. Registrant carelessness The registrant forgets to update Whois details or to renew the account. Domain name disputes If you discover that your domain has been hijacked, contact your registrar immediately. If your registrar is unable to resolve the situation, the ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) Transfer Dispute Resolution Policy (TDRP) applies. By going the above arbitration route, you don’t have to argue your case in person. On the other hand, all you can get back in the process is your domain (and not necessarily that). For a lot more money, you can take your case to court, where you can seek compensation for damages in addition to the return of your domain. This process takes more time, however. You may be able to proceed both ways - get your domain back via ICANN domain dispute resolution procedures and then go to court to collect damages. You can also appeal a domain arbitrator’s decision in court. How to protect your domain name Protecting a domain name is similar to protecting a bricks-and-mortar store from burglary. With a combination of precautions in place, thieves will find it difficult or impossible to gain access. Your domain account information List your name for the administrative contact, and use your full name. Your domain account features Choose a domain registrar that sends registrants transfer pending notifications when a domain transfer is taking place. Other domain security measures Set up a free Whois monitoring alert email service and add your domain to your monitoring list. You will receive email notifications whenever the expiration date, registrar, or status of a monitored domain changes. (Whois does not have data on all domain extensions.) Lois S. is a Technical Executive Writer for http://www.websitesource.com and http://www.lowpricedomains.com with experience in the website hosting industry. Tags: domain hosting, domain registration, expired domains, website hosting
It’s your domain, or so you say. One morning, you wake up to find that it’s registered in someone else’s name. Can you prove it’s yours? Can you get it back? The sex.com story One morning, Gary Kremen woke up to find that the domain name sex.com, which he’d registered in 1994, had changed hands and was registered to ex-convict Stephen Michael Cohen. In 1995, Cohen had allegedly written a fake letter with a forged signature to Network Solutions, the registrar. He stated in that letter that control of sex.com was to be turned over to him. In 2000, the court found the letter to be fraudulent and ruled that sex.com was to be returned to Kremen. Cohen was ordered to pay $65 million in punitive damages and for lost revenue. He never paid it, however, fleeing the US instead. The story continued with charges against Network Solutions for mismanagement of sex.com. A lower court ruled in 2000 that Network Solutions was not accountable for its negligence in handling the domain. A domain name was not tangible property, according to the judge. In 2003, the US Appeals Court ruled that Kremen did have property rights to the domain. The following year, Kremen reached a settlement with VeriSign, the owner of Network Solutions. While the amount was undisclosed, it was rumored to be over $15 million. Domains and ICANN It’s doubtful that any other domain has the value of sex.com. Our domains are valuable to us, though, and we want them to be protected. If they are stolen, we don’t want to spend years fighting to get them back. ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) was created in 1998 to help manage domain names, among other responsibilities. At the ICANN website, we read that ICANN “is dedicated to preserving the operational stability of the Internetand to developing policy appropriate to its mission.” Developed in 2004, ICANN’s Registrar Transfer Dispute Resolution Policy (TDRP) provides detailed steps for registrars to follow if a domain transfer is disputed. Registrars aren’t obligated to follow this policy, and it doesn’t guarantee resolution to domain transfer disputes. However, it provides a suggested policy for registrars to help reach resolutions when domain disputes arise. Domain theft and ICANN What should you do if you discover that someone has hijacked your domain name? First, contact the registrar where you had the domain registered. With evidence that you didn’t authorize the domain to be transferred to another person, that registrar should take the necessary steps to try to return the domain to you. Unfortunately, some registrars aren’t inclined to make the effort to do this, particularly (but not necessarily) those with a lower profit margin per domain. If the registrar for your domain won’t take action on your behalf, go to the gaining registrar with your case. This registrar; the one where your domain is now registered; may or may not want to look into the situation, but you can try your luck with it. According to ICANN’s TDRP, registrars should ” first of all attempt to resolve the problem among the Registrars involved in the dispute.” If they aren’t successful, they should then file a dispute with ICANN. In this ICANN April 2005 report, the suggestion was made (on page 5) to make the dispute resolution process accessible to registrants. At this time, though, if neither registrar will work to help you or will take the issue to ICANN, the ICANN dispute resolution process isn’t available to you. Although ICANN’s Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy is intended for disputes over trademarked domains, some registrants have used it to try to get hijacked domains back. You can file a complaint via one of ICANN’s Approved Providers for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy. Domains and the courts The legal route that sex.com registrant Gary Kremen took is open to you as well. Look for a lawyer in the country of the domain registrar who has experience handling domain name disputes. At this point, you need to weigh the value of your domain with the costs involved in getting it back. The value of sex.com made the legal battle financially worthwhile for Kremen, but many of us would have to stop at this point. Protecting your domain Nothing you can do can guarantee that your domain won’t be hijacked. However, you can take a number of precautions to greatly reduce the chances of it happening. For tips on protecting your domain, see the article Information Highwaymen and Your Domain here: http://articles.websitesource.com/information_highwaymen.shtml About the Author: Lois S. is a Technical Executive Writer for http://www.websitesource.com and http://www.lowpricedomains.com with experience in the website hosting industry. Tags: domain hosting, domain name, Hosting, website hosting
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