Latest news:Google takes a stand against domain tasters

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Google takes a stand against domain tasters

Domain tasting - also known as domain kiting - an underhanded exploitation of a loophole in domain name registration rules that allows unscrupulous SEO ad jockeys to grab a domain name and make money off of it without paying for it. What this means for legitimate web users is that they often can't get their hands on the domain names they want because the domain names are being wasted on these money making schemes.

One simple 5 day grace period loop hole has been the backdoor for domain tasting scammers, who will "try out" a domain name for the 5 day free grace period, stocking it full of generic AdSense ads and other money-making window dressing. Google aims to put a stop to this nefarious practice.

From Information Week: Google is planning to introduce a system to detect a form of domain registration abuse known as domain kiting. In so doing, the company stands to lose millions in advertising revenue, though it may gain far more in user trust and goodwill.

A gain of "far more" in user trust is a major understatement, in my opinion. This kind of action might just get Google over the negative feedback resulting from their Google Health announcement. The Google machine is planning to fight off the tasters and kiters by creating a new Google algorithm just to track them.

Google is famous for their accurate algorithms and this is expected to be no exception. When the new detection system finds evidence that a site is a domain taster site, Google will now pull the AdSense for Domains ads from it. Once the source of revenue is gone for the scammers, the site should start to dry up, in theory.

The kited domains are spam, and often have issues with malware and other problems. You would think that people would be smart enough not to click on the ads when they get directed to one of these pages that are so obviously devoid of content, but click people do. As long as the pages make money, domain kiters and domain tasters will continue to push the envelope of acceptable internet behavior.

Google and ICANN both hope that better control of domain kiting and domain tasting will help stabilize the domain naming system. Currently the system is under duress from the stress of domain kiting and other money making schemes, and has been battling a loss of consumer trust and reliability. In related news, ICANN has begun a push to be freed from its tied to the government, a move which may add another layer of strength to the fight against internet scammers.

Google Takes Aim At Domain Tasting Profiteers

Google is planning to introduce a system to detect a form of domain registration abuse known as domain kiting. In so doing, the company stands to lose millions in advertising revenue, though it may gain far more in user trust and goodwill.

Registrants of Internet domains generally have a five-day grace period between the time a domain is registered and the time payment for the domain is due. This five-day period is used by domain profiteers for domain tasting -- testing the ad revenue generated at a given domain and then returning unprofitable domains -- and for domain kiting -- deleting newly registered domains within the grace period then immediately re-registering them to reset the grace period and postpone payment.

Because domain kiting is essentially a perpetual motion scheme for domain tasting, curtailing kiting will limit tasting. In January 2007, VeriSign said that among the top 10 domain registrars, 95% of all deleted .com and .net domain names were the result of domain tasting.

"We have long discouraged domain kiting as a practice," Google (NSDQ: GOOG) said in an e-mailed statement. "In order to more effectively deter it, we are launching a new domain kiting detection system. If we determine that a domain is being kited, we will not allow Google ads to appear on the site. We believe that this policy will have a positive impact for users and domain purchasers across the Web."

As of Feb. 11, Google plans to begin blocking AdSense for Domains ads from appearing on kited domains. The company did not provide further details about how its kiting detection system will work.

Google's AdSense for Domains program allows domain registrants to generate Web pages full of ads where no Web site content yet exists. The idea is that putting ads on these "parked domains" provides a useful service to online visitors who would otherwise encounter error pages or "site coming soon" notices. Typically, these pages full of ads perform best when they're associated with and relevant to a domain name someone is likely to type directly into a browser's address bar. Critics of the practice consider such pages little more than spam or doorways to malware.

In June, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Numbers and Names (ICANN), the organization that oversees the domain name system, issued a report on the possible consequences of domain tasting, including the destabilization of the domain name system, greater consumer confusion, increased costs and burdens on legitimate registrants, and the facilitation of trademark abuse and criminal activity.

Two months later, ICANN solicited feedback from the Internet community about domain tasting, an inquiry that hinted at possible willingness to curb abuses.

Google has had to contend with the problems ICANN foresaw. Having stepped up its involvement over the past two years in keeping its index free of spam sites, malware sites, and trademark exploiters of various sorts, Google appears to have finally come to the conclusion that the revenue generated by catering to domain profiteers isn't worth the cost.