Can someone register my domain as their legal business name?

[angeljs]

I have a domain name that is exactly the same as my business name. I have received an email stating that someone is going to legally register both and then will send me a cease and desist notice, is this legal?

[BankFodder]

It sounds like a scam email to me .

Why don't you post it up here so we can see .

Certainly, if you have got your domain name registered then nobody else can touch it as long as you keep it renewed.

 

However they could register a business name which is the same as your domain name but if it is the same as your existing business name then it could be a question of passing off which is a tort where are they create confusion in the minds of customers if you are trading in the same kind of product or service.

 

If this happened then it can be very tricky to deal with.

 

To protect yourself properly you should register your business name as a trademark

 

 

 

 

 

[angeljs]

Hello,

This is Steve *****, Sr. Paralegal Officer fromINGIC Design UK. You had a business logo developed for you in 2019. We'd like to inform you that another applicant has filed a Trademark application for the same business name as yours; however, if we go ahead with their application and they receive federal ownership and protection for the mark/name, you'll be required to stop using it under trademark law.

 

Please be aware that failure to respond within the specified time range may aggravate the issue, i.e. I am obligated to honour the application from the opposing party in London. 

 

Your information appeared as we searched our database for the business name. Given that you have already received logo design services from Infinity Logo Design, our internal policy proposes obtaining your authorization if you are willing to reserve trademark rights and registration for the firm under your ownership.

 

If you do not want to register the trademark, the other applicant will be given priority because the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) and European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) work on a first come, first served basis.

 

 

If you could just respond to this email within the next 24 hours, that would be great. We attempted to contact you via emails and calls. If you do not respond within 24 hours, the other applicant will be granted the option to commence their registration with the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office, which will cover and protect the business name and logo in the United Kingdom. To sustain federal ownership rights, you should indeed register your trademark.

 

 

Let me know if you have any further queries.

 

 

Best regards

 

Steve ****** | Senior Paralegal Officer

 

Paralegal Team

 

INGIC Design UK

[Ethel Street]

@angeljsFirst thing, this really isn't something I have any experience or special knowledge about, but I've looked at the email you've received and to me it rings a few alarm bells just based on the things which often indicate a scam.

 

In the case of the email you received which claims to be from INGIC Design UK.

 

INGIC Design UK is supposed to be a UK company (although there is no company of that name on Companies House website). But two things make me think it has originated from the USA. The writer of the email refers to "if they receive federal ownership". Federal ownership is about USA law,  not UK.  The writer, in the first line, abbreviates 'Senior' to 'Sr'. That's a US abreviation (we'd usually abbreviate to 'Snr'). Both those things make me wonder whether the email has come from a UK company as it claims.

 

The "'you must reply within 24 hours or you will lose your trademark' is also typical of scammers. Putting you under time pressue when there's no logical reason for such a tight deadline. Pushing you to make decisons so quickly you have no time to take advice.

 

I see there is a website for INGIC Design UK - https://www.ingicdesign.co.uk/  - but I note that none of its T&Cs or policies say where the company is or offer any postal address.  Often a flag for a scam, but not necessarily so.

 

So I can't say this is definitely a scam, but there's enough flags there to suggest you should tread carefully.

 

Try doing a search for the full name of the supposed paralegal who sent you the email and see if they exist, although of course scammers can spoof the name of a genuine person.

 

Is your business name registered in the USA? Do you have any business there?

 

[dx100uk]

need the email address it was sent from too please exactly!! as its typed.

 

its a scam

 

you didnt have a logo designed by Infinity Logo Design did you

 

dx

 

 

 

[brassnecked]

Also you have the Domain registered in your name and its not about to expire, is it a .co.uk, or .com, as they might try to register the .com if you have the .co.uk

 

Good points from Ethel Street and DX, as there are quite a few Domain Registration scams originating from USA, that can't be founded under UK law.

[mantis shrimp]

It does seem very odd to be saying that they have been instructed by a client to make an application, but that they are offering you a chance to get in first. I wonder what their client (if it exists) would think of that. 

[angeljs]

Thank you all so much for your replies. The exact email address is:

[email protected]

 

I asked them what exactly are their clients trying to register, and received this reply :

 

 

Hello!

 

This is in regards to the trademark of the business name

"B**W**.BIZ" and all of its variations.

 

The conflicting party is willing to proceed with the filing process to get the trademark done with this business name so that they can have the legal rights to use it for their business activities and to get 100% ownership rights. Once the rights will be transferred to them and they get this business name trademarked at their name, you'll be restricted to use this name anymore.

 

However, you can feel free to pursue this with your attorney if you have one on retainer otherwise your attorney will also be charging you the service fee. Should you choose not to move forward with this the contesting applicant will be granted the rights to use the logo and the business name and you will be issued a “Cease and Desist Letter” after 6 days to put down your logo, website, social media, and corporate color branding.

 

This initiative has been started by not only the UKIPO but also the EUIPO, USPTO, and other renowned IPO across the globe. Legit, registered design agencies across the globe are required to share their submissions periodically to avoid lengthy and expensive lawsuits.

 

Moving forward is mandatory. With us or with your attorney is your decision. 

 

Your prompt response will be greatly appreciated.

 

Best regards,

Steve ****** | Senior Paralegal Officer

Paralegal Team

Infinity Logo Design UK

[dx100uk]

but you did not have a logo designed for you website by them did you?

its a very well known scan that is more prevalent in the usa but is spreading here.

 

if you look you'll see its all USA terms used

 

[brassnecked]

But you hold the Registered Domain, so they are trying to poach it from you it may seem as indicated by DX is is a USA scam with the US legal terminology, Did you at any time use that  design studio for a Logo as per DX's question?  The other part is they will threaten you so you transfer the Domain over to their "Conflicting Party"

[stu007]

Hi

 

I agree this seems like a scam but IMO to protect yourself and get confirmation this is a scam/make the other companies that are named in the correspondence to yourself aware of what is going on in there name.

 

In the initial email the name post#3

 

they name INGIC Design UK and its the Para Legal Team from INGIC Design UK

 

so email/contact the actual company and forward a copy of said email and get them to confirm and at the same time you are warning them there name is being used in a scam (I am sure they will appreciate the info): Actual companies website is:

 

UK’s Leading Design Agency Offers Best Designing Services | INGIC Design

WWW.INGICDESIGN.CO.UK

---

INGIC Design is the leading design services provider in UK. We offer comprehensive designing solutions and corporate business branding at the...

 

Then in post#8 the email they used to contact you about this is a different company again: [email protected]

 

Note: logodesignlegend.co.uk (again a completely different company so as with the previous above do exactly the same and ask the actual company by sending them the info you got about this and ask for confirmation/warning them they are being used in a scam)

Best Design Agency for Businesses in UK | Logo Design Legend

WWW.LOGODESIGNLEGEND.CO.UK

---

We offer wide range of logo design, web & mobile app development services to businesses around the globe. Get custom designs with complete...

 

Then in post#8 again it is signed off by there supposed Para Legal except again a completely different company: Infinity Logo Design UK

 

Custom Logo Design Service by Expert Logo Designers

WWW.INFINITYLOGODESIGN.CO.UK

---

We are a custom logo design company having expertise in company logo design, corporate logo design and all types of custom logos.

 

The above links I have provided are the actual companies so IMO as stated just for your own piece of mind you could contact all 3 companies giving them the info you have been sent (that you provided here) and ask them just to confirm they didn't send this and it is a scam. I am sure they will be grateful for you informing them this is going on if they don't already know. (also you will have confirmation to keep on record)

[angeljs]

I've just done an email search and found that I did, in fact, have a logo designed by Logo Design Legend. At the same time, I also came across similar emails from them in November last year, and again in March this year. 

 

I guess the reason I'm confused is because I and others I know used their services and were really happy with their work. But this was a good while ago, so I'm not sure what's going on. 

 

I will try and contact both companies but I can't afford to register my business name as a trademark at the moment and don't want to lose it. 

 

It struck me as very strange that someone would want to register my business name with it being exactly the same as my domain name. 

[brassnecked]

Its almost akin to Domain theft, where someone follows a similar procedure and in effect forces a Domain transfer to the interloper.  If you have been using that business name for a long time, they might come unstuck as you are already established, and UK and US law differ in many ways, something these scammer types don't realise.

[dx100uk]

so its only them trying to frighten you and spend money with them to supposedly secure the domain name.

don't!

 

dx

 

[brassnecked]

They trawl the Domain register and look for names that take their fancy that are near renewal/expiry date, of course if Domainset to Auto renew they are stuck as it won't be released, however if the .com is free and you have a .co.uk or .Biz they might speculatively register that, seen that one done to someone.

[angeljs]

Because of a close family illness, I haven't given this much thought over the past couple of weeks.

 

However, I received yet another email with the exact, same wording a few days ago and just ignored it.

 

I haven't received a reply from any of the companies I contacted that were mentioned in the emails, so not sure what's going on there.

 

I can't afford legal advice, and there is no legal aid in the UK for stuff like this, but I'm assuming it's a scam and will continue to ignore these emails.

 

I have more important things to think about at the moment.

I really do appreciate everyone taking the time to reply, and I feel a bit more at ease about it all now.

[dx100uk]

Let them get on with their scam. They'll soon move on to trying to find someone mug enough to bite .

 

Pers I'd set their email address to junk or ignore options.

 

Sx

 

 

[brassnecked]

These people look at Domain registries and look at some nearing renewal date, then see if someone will bite. as DX says ignore them now especially if you have heard nothing since.

[angeljs]

Well, I haven't been able to deal with this or anything else lately due to serious family issues. However, I have received a few more emails containing the same content, and this morning received this:

 

(If you are NOT CEO, please kindly forward this to your CEO, because this is urgent. If you believe this has been sent to you in error, please ignore it. Thanks)
Dear CEO,
This email is from China domain name registration center, which mainly deal with the domain name registration in China. On August 2, 2022, we received an application from Hongfeng Ltd requested "b*****b" as their internet keyword and China (CN) domain names (b*****b.cn, b*****b.com.cn, b*****b.net.cn, b*****b.org.cn). But after checking it, we find this name conflict with your company name or trademark. In order to deal with this matter better, it's necessary to send email to you and confirm whether this company is your business partner in China?
 
Best Regards
Jeff Liu | Service & Operations Manager

China Registry (Head Office)

Tel: +86-2161918696

Fax: +86-2161918697

Mob: +86-13816428671

6012, Xingdi Building, No. 1698 Yishan Road, Shanghai 201103, China

[dx100uk]

china link def=scam..

 

dx

[brassnecked]

No doubt now DX scam.

[angeljs]

Really? How can you tell?

[brassnecked]

Plenty of scams emanate from China, as they do from India