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The web for me is a hobby where standards and best practices are daily bread. Security is a concern that everybody must be aware of its details for IT in general, and the web in particular, to be a safer place. My life, on the other hand, is that of a regular Lebanese citizen where politics and social issues are discussed on a daily basis. I hope you enjoy reading my blog and make sure to drop me a comment about any topic you find interesting.

Domain Name Locking

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victor | 07 April, 2006 07:46

It has come to my attention lately that many hosting companies in Lebanon do not implement the domain locking policy that was recommended by ICANN back in 2004. In this article, I will simply state what ICANN (Internet Corporation on Assigned Names and Numbers) has to say about this topic and about its importance.
ICANN's Policy (Nov. 2004)

ICANN (Internet Corporation on Assigned Names and Numbers) is the agency that sets the policies that govern the sale, distribution, and protection of domain names. When you purchase a name, it's through an ICANN-approved registrar. If you have a trademark dispute pertaining to a domain name, it's handled through ICANN's dispute resolution process. ICANN also approves new top-level domain (TLD) extensions and sets domain name registration and transfer policies that registrars must follow.

It's this last responsibility that should concern you the most right now.

In an effort to streamline the domain transfer process, ICANN is imposing new regulations as of November 12, 2004. Section 3 details when and how registrars must handle transfer requests:

"Failure by the Registrar of Record to respond within five (5) calendar days to a notification from the Registry regarding a transfer request will result in a default "approval" of the transfer.

In the event that a Transfer Contact listed in the Whois has not confirmed their request to transfer with the Registrar of Record and the Registrar of Record has not explicitly denied the transfer request, the default action will be that the Registrar of Record must allow the transfer to proceed. "

In non-bureaucratic language, this means that anyone can transfer your domain name to a new registrar and change the contact and nameserver information if you fail to respond to the transfer notification within 5 calendar days (not working days!).

This completely changes the previous system, whereby the transfer was denied if the owner failed to respond.


Why Should You Lock Your Domain Name

Once your domain name is locked, all requests for transfer to other registrars will be denied. You must EXPLICITLY unlock the domain name for others to be able to transfer it.

To check whether your domain name is locked or not, you must see the "Status: REGISTRAR-LOCK" when you query your domain name whois.

A whois implementation is provided by NetDesignPlus and can be accessed at the URL below:
www.netdesignplus.net/whois/




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