[orca-users:03131] URGENT NOTICE TO SERV-IT CONTACTS

["Serv-IT Ltd" <rob@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I'm sorry to trouble you all again but this is a VERY IMPORTANT MATTER.

This morning in the post we received several official looking documents, which were trying to trick us into registering domain names.

These documents are very clever, with plenty of reference numbers on and bar codes.

Nominet, the .co.uk domain registry, has issued a warning about a dubious company called UK Internet Registry Ltd, which is mailing fake invoices to domain name owners.

The registry said documents resembling invoices had been mailed by the firm to .co.uk registrants advising them that the .com variant of their domain name was available for the staggering fee of £175.

Nominet distanced itself from the documents, pointing out it doesn't register .com domains or proactively sell .co.uk names.

It said it is "currently investigating whether this company has a listing of .uk domain names and, if so, where they obtained this list from". It urged recipients of the 'invoice' to "never to be bounced into registering a domain name by the pressure selling tactics of an unknown third party".

The ukinternetregistry.com domain was itself only registered this month - on 6 February - and despite the claim that it is a Limited company, no such firm exists on the Companies House database.

Nominet said it intends to pass on information received by affected customers to the Office of Fair Trading and may take legal action against UK Internet Registry Ltd.

I will be forwarding these to our local trading standards office and urge you to should you receive any.  Also please forward this email to as many people as you think need.

Should you have any questions or queries then please do not hesitate in contacting me.

Regards


Rob King
rob@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
01905 767 900