Industry

“Voltswagen”: April Fool’s Prank, Brand Turmoil, and Bulk Domain Registrations

The accidental leak of Volkswagen's new name that turned out to be an April Fool's prank made headlines. Some were relieved that it was just a marketing stunt, while others cried foul. But those in the field of cybersecurity became more curious. What did the cyber world look like during the supposed leakage until the announcement that it was a prank? more

Black Basta Ransomware DNS Investigation Led to OneNote and Courier Impersonation

Among the most active and rapidly spreading ransomware in 2022 was Black Basta. It was first detected in April 2022 and victimized nearly 100 organizations in North America, Europe, and Asia by September that same year. As a ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) malware, Black Basta employs double extortion to force victims to pay the ransom. more

A DNS Investigation of the Phobos Ransomware 8Base Attack

Intel-Ops researchers recently discovered that the 8Base Ransomware Group has been using Phobos ransomware to infect their targets' networks. 8Base has reportedly been active since mid-2023. more

Verisign Domain Name Industry Brief: 364.6 Million Domain Name Registrations in Q3 2021

Today, we released the latest issue of The Domain Name Industry Brief, which shows that the third quarter of 2021 closed with 364.6 million domain name registrations across all top-level domains, a decrease of 2.7 million domain name registrations, or 0.7%, compared to the second quarter of 2021. more

Domain Blocking: The Future of Brand Protection

Since 2014, more than 800 new domain extensions have been added to the internet. In addition to the ubiquitous .com and country-code extensions such as the United Kingdom's .uk and Japan's .jp, unique spaces have been created for industry sectors, special interests, geographical regions and more. more

How to Avoid Fake Product Support Pages with WHOIS API’s Help

Sometimes, seeing several permutations of a famous company's domain names is not just a mere coincidence. Often, these are typosquatting attempts. They are not merely a nuisance, either, because clicking such a URL can have severe effects. more

New .PET Domain Sunrise Period Begins January 19

Afilias, a leading domain registry operator, today announces that the Sunrise Period for the new “dot PET” or .PET top level domain is now open for eligible trademark holders only. more

How to Address Blended Threats with Domain Data

Fighting off individual threats is challenging enough, but things get complicated, and the results more damaging when organizations face blended threats. The practice of combining security threats such as malware and attack vectors confounds if not overwhelms victims, making them easy prey. more

Domain Registrations Reach 331.9 Million, 6.7 Million Growth Year over Year

Verisign in its latest Domain Name Industry Brief issued today, reports the second quarter of 2017 saw close to 1.3 million domain name registrations bringing the total number to approximately 331.9 million across all top-level domains (TLDs) as of June 30, 2017. more

Introduction to ACCELR/8 - Fast Lane to the IPv4 Market

We believe that the same quality of service that the professionals at Avenue4 have delivered to large block market participants, should be made available to all buyers and sellers within the IPv4 trading market. more

New .LGBT Top-Level Domain Launched

Global registry services provider Afilias today announced the first phase of the introduction of a new generic top-level domain that is dedicated to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community and those who serve it: dot LGBT or .LGBT. more

Looking Into a Possible Coronavirus-Themed Survey Scam Turning Out to Be a False Positive

Having crossed the two-million mark in coronavirus infections worldwide, citizens from all nations are facing a difficult time. Sadly, cyber threats and attacks currently spreading online are making the situation worse. more

Afilias’ Technology Successfully Signs .ORG Zone with DNSSEC

Afilias, a global provider of Internet infrastructure services and domain name registry technology, has successfully signed the .ORG zone with Domain Name Security Extensions (DNSSEC) on behalf of its customer, .ORG, The Public Interest Registry (PIR). The .ORG zone is being signed in a phased manner with an initial period allowing for key partners to test the signed zone. more

Phishing Attacks Still Haunt Banking Institutions: How Can Domain Reputation Checks Help?

Phishing attacks continue to post an upward trend. Over the years, phishers have improved their methods, using very convincing domains to bait victims into their schemes. more

Neustar Announces Partnership with the National Small Business Association

Neustar, Inc., a trusted, neutral provider of real-time information and analysis to Internet, telecommunications, entertainment, advertising and marketing industries, announced a partnership today with the National Small Business Association (NSBA), the nation's first small-business advocacy group. more