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If you can't do the time, don't register the domain
31st March, 2003
In a little noticed outcome with potentially far-reaching implications for the domain name system, the US House of Representatives has voted to provide criminal sanctions for the use of misleading domain names on the Internet.
An amendment to a child protection Bill currently on its way through Congress now provides 'Whoever knowingly uses a misleading domain name with the intent to deceive a person into viewing obscenity on the Internet shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both'. The Bill also provides a 4 year sentence for use of a domain name in a similar way to target minors.
What is a misleading name? The amendment does not define the term, other than to exclude names which contain a word or words to indicate the sexual content of the site, such as 'sex' or 'porn'. Some commentators are saying that this legislation would have caught one of the most notorious domain names of them all, whitehouse.com which does not represent the present abode of George W but instead is a site featuring adult content.
What is interesting about the present amendment is, however well-intentioned, it may have an effect on the Internet domain name system which its proponent did not consider. Specifically, the law is framed in such a way that it may be capable of wide-ranging extra-territorial reach.
The first question for a person attempting to interpret the measure is when, how or where a domain name is 'used'. The answer would be determined by the US Courts at the time of the first prosecution, but it may well be that any domain name which is on a relevant registry database is being 'used' in the USA. The registry database often exists there purely because that is the physical location of the operator's computer (for example, the .com registry lives in Virginia).
More details at: http://www.demys.net/news/2003/03/31_ti.htm
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