Look-alike domain names

Is there a way to deal with or prevent this?

[GaryK]

Greetings. I checked Google and this forum's Library but could not find an answer to the question I have. I'm hoping to get some real-life advice before deciding if it's worth getting my IP Attorney involved in this.

One of my sites is now eight years old. A lot of us have put a great deal of effort into providing tons of unique content and we rank very high in the SERPs for a number of keywords.

Apparently as a side-effect of our success several people have registered look-alike domain names, apparently counting on some people to mistype our actual domain name. Sadly, all these sites are rife with multiple pop-ups, offers to install spyware/adware, and who knows what else.

I know large companies can afford to buy all these look-alike domain names much as Google has done and redirect people to the real site.

My site is a hobby site and is entirely supported out of my pocket so I could not justify buying more than the .com, .org and .net versions of the domain name back in 1998. Now it's too late to buy the look-alike domains even if I could justify the expense.

I know you all are not lawyers. But in your experience is there anything that can be done about this look-alike issue?

[creepychris]

Is your domain name a trademark you own?

If yes, then possibly. There is a dispute resolution mechanism for dealing with trademark infringement in domain names. Look up 'UDRP' at ICANN. But you will have to show that the domain name registrations in question were 'Bad Faith' registrations. In general, a page of ads (including pop-ups) is not, in and of itself, considered 'Bad Faith'.

Also, there is a substantial fee to use this process.

But if you are serious, don't you think you should consult an IP lawyer with the particulars of your case? The hundreds you will spend for a consultation are far less then the amount to use the process.

[GaryK]

Thanks for your reply.

The domain name and website name are not registered trademarks. The domain and the website are owned by a Florida Sub-S Corp.

The look-alike domains target the same niche as my domain does, albeit with no content other than links to MFA sites; and the aforementioned pop-ups and such. So at least to me they are doing this with the intent to fool people.

I think you're right about it being less expensive to consult with my IP Attorney. If nothing else to see if it's worth going through the dispute resolution you mentioned.

Thanks for the advice. It's much appreciated. :)