Registrar for “sensitive niches” has not been handling DNS abuse properly, ICANN says.
ICANN sent a breach notice (pdf) to domain name registrar Fewmoretaps OU, d/b/a TrustName.com, today.
TrustName’s website bills itself as the “most trusted independent domain registrar for privacy-conscious individuals and businesses in sensitive niches. Count on us to be your “bulletproof” domain registrar.”
The Estonian domain registrar’s website also states that it has millions of customers. Which domains those customers are registering is not clear; the latest Verisign report shows it has only about 1,000 .com domains.
ICANN has a litany of complaints, particularly around how TrustName is handling abuse complaints. It stated that TrustName dismissed some complaints on technicalities and didn’t take appropriate action on others.
In February, TrustName implemented a remediation plan to address the abuse complaint issues, but ICANN said the same issues continue to this day.
ICANN also stated that the registrar was using misleading language and quoting ICANN Contractual Compliance out of context to suggest ICANN endorsed the registrar’s action (or inaction) on abuse complaints.
TrustName also doesn’t have required information on its website, including the names of officers and what its redemption/restoration fees are.
ICANN is giving the registrar until July 1 to clean up its act.
