Mailinglist Archive

Domain Transfers (and Hijackings) to Become Easier

Domain names could become easier to hijack as a change in domain
transfer rules takes effect Friday. Under new rules set by the Internet
Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), domain transfer
requests will be automatically approved in five days unless they are
explicitly denied by the account owner. This is a change from current
procedure, in which a domain's ownership and nameservers remain
unchanged if there is no response to a transfer request.

This could mean trouble for domain owners who don't closely manage their
records. Domains with incorrect e-mail addresses and outdated
administrative contact information are at particular risk, as the
domain's WHOIS database information will be used to inform domain owners
of transfer requests. A non-response becomes the equivalent of answering
"yes" to a transfer request, according to the ICANN policy change.

http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2004/11/09/domain_transfers_and_hijackings_to_become_easier.html