You're serious about your web site. You've paid between $70 and $100 to register a domain name, one that uniquely identifies your name or objective. You've listed that domain name with all the major search engines, you've had it printed on your stationery and business cards...it may even appear in your advertising materials. But you may be powerless to protect or control your domain if you fail this quick test.

Go to http://rs.internic.net and search for your domain name in the registered domain name database. You'll see a page that looks like this:

Registrant:
     YourCompany, Inc. (YOURCOMPANY-DOM)
        777 Your St.
        Yourcity, ST xxxxx

        Domain Name: YOURCOMPANY.COM

        Administrative Contact:
           Rep#1, YourCompany  (xxxxx-ORG)  rep_one@YOURCOMPANY.COM
           xxx-xxx-phone
           xxx-xxx-faxx
        Technical Contact, Zone Contact:
           Web Hosting Company  (xxxxx-ORG)  host@webhostingcompany.com
           xxx-xxx-phone
        Billing Contact:
           Rep#2, YourCompany  (xxxxx-ORG)  rep_two@yourcompany.com
           xxx-xxx-phone
           xxx-xxx-faxx

        Record last updated on (date)
        Record created on (date)
        Database last updated on (date)

        Domain servers in listed order:

        NS1.WEBHOSTINGCOMPANY.COM
        NS2.WEBHOSTINGCOMPANY.COM

Are you or your company listed as the registrant?

Who is administrative contact? Who is the billing contact? Who is the technical contact? You or a representative of your company should be listed as the billing contact, at the very least. It's preferable that you list yourself (or your company) as both the administrative and billing contacts.

The technical contact is usually the company that is hosting your web site; if you are hosting your site in house, then the technical contact should be your company's MIS director or computer geek. Keep your contact information with InterNIC up to date, especially your e-mail address since return address is used as a method of authorization for domain modifications. What does that mean in English?

It means that InterNIC keeps your e-mail address on file, and when you request to move your domain, they check the sender's identity by e-mail address. If the request isn't issued or authorized using one of the contact e-mail addresses listed with InterNIC, then no changes will be made until you can prove your identity and authority to request changes to that domain.

It's intended to protect the domain owner from unauthorized changes, but when the owner isn't listed as an authorized contact, it can get very frustrating. You must provide proof of identity by copying your driver's license, and faxing it along with a completed form from InterNIC stating that you are the domain registrant or are allowed to act on the registrant's behalf. This process can take days, and during this time your web site is either down, or in someone else's hands...a disgruntled former employee, web designer or host, perhaps?

If you are not listed as either administrative or billing contact on your domain registration form, then contact the individual who is listed and request that this change be made immediately. If this is not possible, then you will need to complete and fax a change form to InterNIC. You can find that here: http://rs.internic.net/help/templates.html

The domain registration change process is not an easy one, but the alternatives can be far worse. Be sure to check your domain registration record and modify it if necessary; this one time when a little prevention beats a lengthy, expensive cure.

Article by Meredith Tupper of PintSize Graphics & Web Hosting, Inc. Quality web design and hosting at fair prices. Visit today at http://www.pintsize.com/ !

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes,
but in having new eyes."
- Marcel Proust

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