domains Facebook sues Online NIC for domain name fraud

[Lox]

This week we (Facebook) filed suit in California against domain name registrar OnlineNIC and its privacy/proxy service ID Shield for registering domain names, or web addresses, that pretended to be affiliated with our company, such as www-facebook-login.com and facebook-mails.com. By mentioning our apps and services in the domain names, OnlineNIC and ID Shield intended to make them appear legitimate and confuse people. This activity is known as cybersquatting and OnlineNIC has a history of this behavior.

read more (FB newsroom)

 

[King]

Good, helps prevent phishing

 

[Bob Hawkes]

While Facebook have won many UDRPs, this move to take actions against the registrars who allow infringing domains to be registered, or at least one of them, will be watched carefully by other registrars I am sure. Thanks for letting us know @Lox.
Bob

 

[Picorio]

Yes Lox that's right! Unfortunately, OnlineNIC has a history of allowing cyber-squatters to register domain names pretending to be certain companies or entity. Basically they are the domain "black market" (dark web) They actually have been sued in the past for the same issue by other tech companies such us Yahoo,Microsoft, and Verizon. According to the report, "Verizon, Engadget's parent company won $33.2 million in a lawsuit against OnlineNIC in 2008 for 663 addresses created to look like they were owned by the carrier." Apparently they haven't learned the lesson from their previous mistakes. I'm pretty sure Facebook probably will win this case as well against them and like Mr. Bob Hawkes said: this legal issue " will be watched carefully by other registrars."

 

[Lox]

According to the report, "Verizon, Engadget's parent company won $33.2 million in a lawsuit against OnlineNIC in 2008 for 663 addresses created to look like they were owned by the carrier."

III. ORDER
For the foregoing reasons, Verizon's motion for contempt sanctions will be granted in the amount of $30,600.00. OnlineNIC's motion for relief from the $33.15 million default judgment entered against it on December 19, 2008 will be denied. However, in the interest of justice, Verizon will be required to prove up its damages (including the proper per-violation amount of statutory damages) in the context of the adversarial proceeding that has arisen since OnlineNIC appeared in the litigation.[13] The Court expressly reserves jurisdiction to modify the amount of the judgment according to proof. Counsel shall meet and confer and contact the Court's administrative law clerk to arrange an appropriate hearing date.

read more

 

[Michael Ehrhardt]

Facebook sounds like a model agency : book a Face

 

[platey]

While Facebook have won many UDRPs, this move to take actions against the registrars who allow infringing domains to be registered, or at least one of them, will be watched carefully by other registrars I am sure. Thanks for letting us know @Lox.
Bob

Domain names are Digital land

But just as with buying actual land and or actual property etc you don't get ownership within 3 mins of buying because the legal side of the transaction still has to be done before you get ownership etc

But with digital land etc Eg domain names etc

The legal side of the purchase never gets completed before ownership because the legal side of the transaction exists outside and or after purchase etc when in fact the legal side of the transaction should be employed by the registrar to make sure that domain names that Infringe trademarks or patent or copyright etc are checked by legal departments of domain name registrar s so that it is impossible to buy these domain names

 

[pereceh]

www .facebook .ae is hosted by HostGator. and it looks like this domain registrar is not Facebook, Inc

 

[Jurgen Wolf]

FB should address their complaints to ICANN...
Only ICANN is responsible to terminate registrars...
So looks that ICANN doesn't see any violations - if this registrar still exists after many scandals.

 

[sharfab]

That registrar paid a HEFTY fine dealing with the Verizon lawsuit...