The Wall Street Journal made extensive coverage to domain theft and cybercrime that targets businesses yesterday.
In an epic article covering the domain theft of ShadesDaddy.com and MLA.com – both of which we covered extensively in the past – the WSJ shares feedback from important industry attorneys.
Philip Corwin, counsel to the Internet Commerce Association, emphasizes that thieves hijack domain names and transfer them to such places as China, Eastern Europe and Russia in what appears to be “organized criminal activity.”
David Weslow, an Internet attorney in Washington, states that domain thieves may “also be interested in other means for monetizing the stolen domain name, such as the display of pay-per-click advertisements, display of a website that downloads malware, or use of the domain name to send legitimate-looking emails containing spam, viruses and/or phishing correspondence.”
Stevan Lieberman, a Washington attorney who represents domain owners, points out that at least 15 cases seeking the return of domain names were filed in U.S. courts last year, up from five in 2013.
Enrico Schaefer, a Traverse City, Mich., attorney who specializes in Internet law, shares that cybercriminals sometimes hijack domain names by scraping public directories listing contact data for domain owners.
For this important coverage on domain theft by the Wall Street Journal, click here.
