FTC Warns That Rapid Expansion of Internet Domain Name System Could Leave Consumers More Vulnerable to Online Fraud

The Federal Trade Commission sent a letter to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the organization that oversees Internet domain names, expressing concern that the organization's plan to dramatically expand the domain name system could leave consumers more vulnerable to online fraud and undermine law enforcers' ability to track down online scammers.

In its letter to ICANN, the Commission warned that rapid expansion of the number of generic top-level domain names (gTLDs) – the part of the domain name to the right of the dot, such as ".com," ".net" and ".org" – could create a "dramatically increased opportunity for consumer fraud," and make it easier for scam artists to manipulate the system to avoid being detected by law enforcement authorities. The Commission urged ICANN – before approving any new gTLD applications – to take additional steps to protect consumers, including starting with a pilot program to work out potential problems.

Before approving any new gTLD applications, the FTC urged ICANN to:

• implement the new program as a pilot program and substantially reduce the number of generic top level domains that are introduced as a result of the first application round;
• strengthen ICANN's contractual compliance program, in particular by hiring additional compliance staff;
• develop a new ongoing program to monitor consumer issues that arise during the first round of implementing the new gTLD program;
• assess each new proposed generic top level domain's risk of consumer harm as part of the evaluation and approval process;
• improve the accuracy of Whois data, including by imposing a registrant verification requirement.