Someone registered your brand as a .pk domain: what now?

First, stay calm and check the facts

Finding your brand on someone else's .pk domain feels personal. Often it is not. Another business may share your name, or someone may have registered it early.

Before you act, see what is on the domain. Is it a live shop, a parked page, or empty? Does it copy your logo or mislead your customers? Take dated screenshots now.

Remember that PKNIC's policy says registering a domain gives no legal rights to the name. That cuts both ways. The holder does not automatically own your brand, and you do not automatically own the domain.

• Screenshot the page and note the date
• Write down when you first used your brand
• Do not contact the holder in anger

How .pk disputes are handled

PKNIC's policy sends disputes about applying for, registering or using a .pk name to binding arbitration under the rules of the Domain Name Dispute Resolution Center (DNDRC). PKNIC has also adopted the ICANN UDRP with its own amendments. Where the two clash, PKNIC's amendments win.

PKNIC may cancel or transfer a domain under that process, or on a Pakistani court judgment. It says it will carry out DNDRC decisions unless they depart materially from the DNDRC rules or PKNIC's process, or conflict with arbitration law.

So there are two formal routes: the DNDRC or a court. We could not find a DNDRC fee schedule in PKNIC's published policy, so ask the DNDRC directly before you set a budget.

What you must prove

Under the UDRP the complainant must prove three things together. If one fails, the complaint fails.

PKNIC's policy adds that a trade name, copyright or similar claim counts only if it is registered with an official Pakistani office or recognised by Pakistani courts, such as an international trademark. An unregistered shop name is a weak starting point.

• The domain is identical or confusingly similar to a mark you hold rights in
• The holder has no rights or legitimate interest in the name
• The name was registered and is being used in bad faith

What counts as bad faith, and what evidence helps

The UDRP gives examples of bad faith. They include registering a name mainly to sell it to the mark owner for more than the holder's costs, stopping you from using your own mark, disrupting a competitor, or drawing visitors by confusion for gain.

The holder can reply with their own proof, such as genuine use of the name for real goods or services, or being commonly known by it.

Gather evidence that fits these points. Useful items are your trademark filing or certificate, dated sales and advertising records, screenshots of the other site, and any message where the holder asks you for money. Keep copies in one folder.

Time, cost and the realistic picture

PKNIC's dispute page says the holder has 14 days to respond to the DNDRC's request. Extra time is given only at the DNDRC's discretion. PKNIC does not state how long a full case takes or what it costs, so we will not guess.

Under the UDRP the remedy is cancelling or transferring the domain, not damages. For a small business, count the time spent gathering proof and any legal help when you compare this route with buying the name.

Buying the domain instead

If your case is weak, or you need the name soon, buying may suit you. You agree a price with the holder, with no panel and no risk of losing a case.

On our marketplace (/#browse), owners list existing domains and payment is held in escrow until the sale completes. See /buy-domain/ for how a purchase works. We cannot promise any particular domain will be for sale.

PKNIC fixes the registrant name at registration, so any change of holder follows PKNIC's own process. Meanwhile, search other names you may need at /domains/, and see /register-pk-domain/ to register new ones in your own name.

Common questions