is the registration of an Internet domain name without using it for services such as e-mail or a website. This may be done to reserve the domain name for future development, to protect against the possibility of cybersquatting, or to engage in cybersquatting. Since the domain name registrar will have set name servers for the domain, the registrar or reseller potentially has use of the domain rather than the final registrant. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_parking )

Domain name warehousing

is the common practice of registrars obtaining control of domain names with the intent to hold or “warehouse” names for their use and/or profit. Also see domain name front running and domain tasting, related business practices employed by registrants.

Typically this practice occurs after a domain name has expired and the previous owner (registrant) has not exercised his/her right to renew that name within the allotted time frame (approximately 45 days following expiration). Domain's expiration date and time are easily calculated based on the expiration date in the whois and the redemption process. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name_warehousing )

Domain tasting

is the practice of a domain name registrant using the five-day "grace period" (the Add Grace Period or AGP) at the beginning of the registration of an ICANN-regulated second-level domain to test the marketability of the domain. During this period, when a registration must be fully refunded by the domain name registry, a cost-benefit analysis is conducted by the registrant on the viability of deriving income from advertisements being placed on the domain's website. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_tasting )

Domain name front running

is the practice whereby a domain name registrar uses insider information to register domains for the purpose of re-selling them or earning revenue via ads placed on the domain's landing page. By registering the domains, the registrar locks out other potential registrars from selling the domain to a customer. The registrar typically takes advantage of the 5-day "domain tasting" trial period, where the domain can be locked without payment. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name_front_running )

Typosquatting, also called URL hijacking

is a form of cybersquatting which relies on mistakes such as typographical errors made by Internet users when inputting a website address into a web browser. Should a user accidentally enter an incorrect website address, they may be led to an alternative website owned by a cybersquatter.

"Catchall" typosquatting

In addition to purchases of individual domain name, several attempts have been made by larger corporations to profit from users' typos by redirecting them without their knowledge.

• Microsoft's Internet Explorer automatically redirects users' mistyped URL queries to their MSN Search page. Though a user can reconfigure their browser to use a different search tool, Google, one of MSN's biggest rivals, is not in the list. However, on their web site, Google has explained how to make their search engine the IE default for mistyped urls.
• In 2003, top-level domain registry operator VeriSign's Site Finder automatically redirected traffic sent to unregistered domains. This caused a fair amount of outrage from the Internet standards community, and an emergency patch to BIND was issued to circumvent VeriSign's actions. VeriSign disabled the service after only three weeks. ( http://www.enotes.com/topic/Typosquatting#.22Catchall.22_typosquatting )

Reverse domain name hijacking (also known as reverse cybersquatting)

occurs where a trademark owner attempts to secure a domain name by making false cybersquatting claims against a domain name’s rightful owner.This often intimidates domain name owners into transferring ownership of their domain names to trademark owners to avoid legal action, particularly when the domain names belong to smaller organizations or individuals. Reverse domain name hijacking is most commonly perpetrated by larger corporations and famous individuals.

Reverse domain name hijacking is an analogue to the practice of domain hijacking, wherein domain name registrants registered domain names containing famous third party trademarks with the intent of profiting by selling the domain names back to trademark owners.Trademark owners initially responded by filing cybersquatting lawsuits against registrants to enforce their trademark rights. However, as the number of cybersquatting incidents grew, trademark owners noticed that registrants would often settle their cases rather than litigate.Consequently, although the filing of cybersquatting lawsuits began as a defensive strategy to combat cybersquatting, such lawsuits also can be used as a way of strongarming innocent domain name registrants into giving up domain names that the trademark owner is not, in fact, entitled to. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_domain_hijacking )

Domain name speculation

is the practice of identifying and registering or acquiring Internet domain names with the intent of selling them later for a profit.

The main targets of domain name speculation are generic words which can be valuable for type-in traffic and for the dominant position they would have in any field due to their descriptive nature. Hence generic words and phrases such as poker, insurance, travel, creditcards, sex and others are attractive targets of domain speculation in any top-level domain.

The speculative characteristics of domain names may be linked to news reports or current events. However, the effective period during which such opportunities exist may be limited. Quick turnaround in the resale of domains is often called domain flipping.

Domain sniping

is the practice of an individual registering a domain name whose registration has lapsed in the immediate moments after expiry. This practice has largely been rendered moot through ICANN's addition of the Redemption Grace Period (RGP), which allows registrants 30 days to reclaim their domain name. By law there are no perpetual rights to domain names after payment of registration fees lapses, aside from trademark rights granted by common law or statute. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_sniping )

Fast flux

is a DNS technique used by botnets to hide phishing and malware delivery sites behind an ever-changing network of compromised hosts acting as proxies. It can also refer to the combination of peer-to-peer networking, distributed command and control, web-based load balancing and proxy redirection used to make malware networks more resistant to discovery and counter-measures. The Storm Worm is one of the recent malware variants to make use of this technique. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast_flux )

Domain hack (sometimes known as a domain name hack)

is an unconventional domain name that combines domain levels, especially the top-level domain (TLD), to spell out the full "name" or title of the domain. Well-known examples include blo.gs, del.icio.us, cr.yp.to, retou.ch, and goo.gl.

In this context, the "hack" represents a trick (as in programming), not an exploit or break-in (as in security). ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_hack )