A recent report on domain names states that more and more of the dot com, dot net, dot org-ending titles are being stolen. This is especially true when the domain name is considered valuable. Face it, some of the names are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. When you buy a domain, it’s important if not imperative for you to find ways to protect it.

If you find your domain name has been stolen, you need to act quick. The longer you hesitate, the more difficult it will be to get it back. That said, there are some important steps to take once you find your domain name has been pilfered.

Determine if the Domain Name is Really Stolen

First things first. It’s possible that your domain name wasn’t stolen, so much as you didn’t pay the annual renewal fee for the name. Once that happens, the name will expire. You will be offered a “holding period” which will give you an opportunity to renew the name for an additional fee.

But once that holding period is finished and you still haven’t renewed, the domain name will be dropped and anyone who wants to buy it or steal it, can do so. Once that happens, say goodbye to your domain name. You no longer own it.

Theft of Domain Names

Domain name theft occurs when you’ve paid to renew a soon to expire name, but it gets stolen anyway. It means a crafty domain thief has been able to gain access to your domain name registrar account.

If you’ve paid to register your domain name for a period of 5 years, and a cyber thief hacks your account, they will transfer the name to a separate account and use another registrar to reactivate it. Once that process is completed, your domain name has been officially stolen.

Theft of Domain Names is Rising

Billhartzer.com further states that this year alone, the following valuable domain names have been stolen. It’s important to note that as of this writing, not a single one has been returned to the rightful owner.

Perl.com: stolen in January, 2021

Neurologist.com: stolen in January, 2021

Chip.com: stolen in January, 2021

Piracy.com: stolen in December, 2020 or January 2021

These names, and others like them, were stolen by a professional “domain name thief.” The thieves were able to hack the owner’s registrar account and register the name to another account. It’s possible they changed the ownership record to reflect a domain name that is private, and therefore its contact details will be hidden.

When they reregister the name, they will unhide the details so that it appears the original owner is still sole proprietor of the domain name. But in all actuality, the name belongs to the thief who will then attempt to sell the name for a fraction of what it’s worth on sites like Sedo.com and Afternic.com.

Why Steal a Domain Name?

Of course, the answer to that question all comes down to money. It’s simply a way for a cyber thief to profit off of someone else’s success. They are able to hack into an account, transfer the domain name to a separate account, and sell it off for a profit. For a computer expert/programmer who knows what he or she is doing, the process is rather simple, which is a frightening thought.

Should Your Domain Name Get Stolen

Should your domain name or names, get stolen, you must make sure you did not fail to renew it prior to its expiration date. You need to log into your registrar account to determine if the name is still under your ownership. You might also check your old emails and/or your spam email account to see if you received emails you might have missed regarding domain name renewals. If you have not received any emails, then immediately contact the registrar.

Next step would be to make a check on the WHOIS record. If it turns out you no longer own the name, you need to initiate an investigation into exactly what’s happened. Go to DomainIQ or Domain Tools to get a full WHOIS report. If you are able to determine with certainty your domain name was stolen, contact your domain name registrar. They will file a domain name theft report with DNProtect.com

Always Protect Your Domain Name(s)

There is more than one way to protect your domain name, such as moving it to a more secure domain name registrar service. But at base, one of the best ways to make sure you name won’t be stolen is to register it for at least 5 years. This protects you against domain name expiration, which is the very opening domain name thieves are on the hunt for.