How domain blocking can protect businesses
Businesses in Pennsylvania invest substantial sums to build and protect their brands and reputations. Over the past few decades, the online presence of businesses has become a vital component of business operations. Unfortunately, cybercriminals sometimes purchase domains with similar names to the trademarks of companies and can do significant harm to their brands and reputations. One way for businesses to protect their trademarks online is through the use of domain blocking services.
The rise of cybercriminals as a threat to brands
Cybercriminals can and will take advantage of top-level domains. The 2019 Cost of Cyber Crime annual report from Accenture Security found that cybercrime attacks increased by 16% year-over-year.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, allowed adult entertainment websites to begin registering domains with the xxx extension beginning in 2011. Many businesses became aware that any name could be registered with that extension and wanted a way to block their trademarks from being registered by others under that top-level domain. The ICM Registry responded to the businesses by allowing them to block their trademarks from being used in the xxx domain.
Domain blocking to prevent trademark infringement online
Trademark infringement has increased on the internet, making it important for businesses to include domain-blocking to protect their brands. Companies can do this by blocking new registrations of domains with their trademarks within various top-level domains. As a part of this strategy, businesses might want to register domains within country-code top-level domains and new generic top-level domains as they are created.
Businesses that discover their trademarks have been infringed online might want to consult with experienced intellectual property attorneys to learn about how to address the problem before significant damage is done to their brands. The lawyers might help their clients to file trademark infringement lawsuits against the perpetrators to prevent further infringement and recover damages for their clients. Cybercriminals have grown smarter and constantly find new ways to exploit businesses and consumers online. Taking steps to prevent trademark infringement online and promptly addressing any infringement that occurs are critical for modern businesses.