It looks like from a post on Namepros some might be concerned that Namesilo (an advertiser here) has taken the name BreonnaTaylor.com and is redirecting the name to a GoFundMe page for Breonna’s family. Namesilo will be donating $10,000.
I have reached out for a statement and will update if and when I get one.
WNKY.com reported on the domain here
Namesilo made the following statement in an email to me and on Namepros.
Thank you to all the community members who took time to research the facts of the situation prior to reaching any conclusions.To summarize – we received numerous reports about the domain name breonnataylor.com. Following an investigation, we found it was indeed inciting violence and unlawful behavior against the police department that had nothing to do with the domain, so we decided to take it down per our T&Cs. In an already tense situation, leaving up the domain name would have been irresponsible and only serve to create further anger and pain.To help ease some of the damage done, we decided to instead forward the domain name to support the GoFundMe of Breonna Taylor’s family, along with a 10k donation. We are currently trying to get in touch with Breonna’s family and offer them access to the domain name. Otherwise, we will deactivate the domain again once the GoFundMe campaign is completed.We hope you will stand with us in supporting Breonna Taylor’s family and the Black community dealing with these injustices.
Namesilo, I’m sure, has close ties with namepros, if not one and the same. Good luck getting to the bottom of that over there. The shill army will be in full force regarding this. I am sure ‘commandeering’ a domain for registar profit is against some ICANN rule. Don’t think they own the domains in any regard. They are just technical intermediaries overstepping their liberties IMO. If they don’t delete the domain, they are breaking a rule called ‘warehousing’. Don’t expect ICANN to enforce their own rules though. Your industry is so far gone – out of control. If true, what namesilo is doing is despicable.
Most registrars have in their TOS they can take a domain name back
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Well I can’t find new info on warehousing being ‘against’ the rules. Just that icann kicks the can and domainers hate the practice. Either way, none of those in this industry ‘work for you’. It’s still so out of control, obviously. If namesilo did this, im sure there will be renewed outrage. Nothing gets done.
Well as I linked to in the article, there is a Kentucky website saying that where the domain was pointing to was not a charity website they had anything to do with setting up.
Oh I looked at wayback and saw what was recorded june 1-2. Didn’t see anything illegal but that’s IMO.
https://web.archive.org/web/20200601225307/https://breonnataylor.com/
Seems to me, namesilo simply didn’t like how it was being used.
Also interesting, whois shows the date registered was 1 day BEFORE she was killed. Could be a timezone thing, but if WIKI is right she died on 5-13 (-4 GMT). Domain registered 5-12. Not sure how besides some timezone thing.
It is strange about the KY websites (one .gov). https://web.archive.org/web/20200531041536/https://saferlouisville.org/ (also down)
https://saferlouisville.org is offline too. It was the 3rd donation link. That could have been the scam. Not very relevant regardless.
Sad it was used the way it was, to support some KY stuff, maybe some scam.
Also sad that namesilo choose to parade the domain around themselves. It doesn’t matter if they how they ‘use it’ IMO. How are we going to trust they are any more ‘legitimate’ in collecting donations than anyone else (except her family)? We’re just supposed to trust them, because why?
I see it as a social grandstanding publicity stunt and an abuse of their position in order to virtue signal. A lot of important questions. It’s great to do nice things…but did anyone in her family ASK them? Seems to me they are taking a lot of unnecessary liberties (given their underlying business) which leads to a slippery slope.
Is this the new normal now? Are registars going to take over domains and put them to ‘better’ use than the original registrant? They are the arbiters of social justice? How many times will this be allowed to happen? How safe are our domains?…registars are beginning to figure out how valuable a good domain might be. Perhaps they believe you are ‘misusing’ them, and they are better suited to develop it in spite of you?
I can understand the domain getting seized but Namesilo putting up their own site and then deciding how the name should be used is very inappropriate.
What happens if Verisign decided to seize CoronaVirus.com because GoDaddy have it pointing to the WHO (which the US government believe is strongly China affiliated) and replace it with their own content?
Since when is it ok for a registrar/registry to make a decision based on content then replace it with what they believe is the right content and become the operator of that site?
I believe for the “since when” part it’s in the TOS.
But Namesilo had another option, every registrar states
You agree that (INSERT REGISTRAR), in its sole discretion and without liability to you, may refuse to accept the registration of any domain name. INSERT REGISTRAR also may in its sole discretion and without liability to you delete the registration of any domain name during the first thirty (30) days after registration has taken place.
So they could delete it for any reason, then register it for the Taylor family. Domain is less than 30 days old.
I’m guessing they see far more PR mileage in taking it for themselves and promoting the domain and their “good deed”.
Exactly Raymond Hackney Sir,
That’s Register Decision,
Everyone wants to be a domainer. Registries, registars. They want their cake and eat ours too. They are allowed to take our domains and use them for themselves at their discretion. Registrars should not be allowed to use customer-registered domains for their own uses, ever, in any regard! It is a fundamentally flawed idea, there will be a long-term result.
What will happen (however long it takes), they will become bolder and brazen, taking valuable domains on whatever grounds they conjure up, just to monetize them themselves. Hate to say it, that’s how things end up. Call it a theory if you want, but these type of lawless structure ALWAYS end up making a power grab for more $. More $ is their sole MO. They could give a fk about the little guys whom they are supposed to serve.
ICANN is totally complacent in allowing them to parade around with these ‘civil asset forfeitures’. It’s like a slap in the face to investors!
Start your own registrar, piece of cake 😉
To address some of your concerns – this was very much an isolated situation, so any concerns of us arbitrarily seizing domain names from registrants are completely false.
We have no intention to keep this domain name either but the situation was volatile and we needed to be responsible. The domain was circulating across different media and incorrectly implicating police involvement and ownership, so it became a matter of public safety as well. Our T&Cs were indeed broken, but above all, we wanted to demonstrate basic morality and decency to a grieving family.