Domain Name Scam

Have you received a "important notice" about your domain name expiring either from Internet Registry of Canada who have a post office box number in Markham Ont. Ignore it, as it is a scam; see http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/SSG/ct02207e.html The "Internet Registry of Canada" is not certified by the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA), the body officially sanctioned to administer the registration of the ".ca" domain name in Canada. Only CIRA Certified Registrars can apply to CIRA for registration of ".ca" domain names. For a list of CIRA certified registrars please visit their web site at www.cira.ca.

Complaints received by the Competition Bureau indicate that the mailings from the "Internet Registry of Canada" give the impression that it is affiliated with the Government of Canada or that it is an officially sanctioned agency for registering domain names in Canada. The "Internet Registry of Canada" is not associated with any government agency. The "Domain Registry of Canada" is another false domain name registry, I believe it's the same group but now utilizing a post box in Thornhill Ont.

How can you check on these registrars? Go to http://www.cira.ca/en/home.html first to determine if the registry is legitimate and registered in Canada. Next go to www.networksolutions.com at http://www.netsol.com/ and use their whois to look up the domain name. The record will indicate to you who the various contact people are, where the site is hosted and the expiry date. The record will also indicate to you who the present registry of the domain name is and its expiry date. You can change your registrar to another registrar (I have been moving my domain name registries to Canada because it is cheaper) provided you give the former registrar two months notice of your intent to transfer the domain name elsewhere. In the case of Network Solutions they will not allow the transfer to take place in the final two months of the domain's registration expiry date at Network Solutions so transfer early.