A company’s domain name is its digital identity, yet many businesses make critical mistakes when managing their domains. A poorly managed domain can lead to downtime, security risks, and even loss of business credibility.
To ensure your domain remains secure and operational, it’s essential to understand common domain management mistakes and how to avoid them. In this article, we’ll explore the five most common domain mistakes and the best practices to keep your online presence safe.
1. Letting Domains Expire
The Problem:
Many businesses forget to renew their domains, causing their websites and emails to go offline. In the worst cases, competitors or cybercriminals buy expired domains, leading to:
✔ Brand damage & lost customer trust
✔ Email disruption & business communication failure
✔ Expensive recovery costs if the domain is purchased by another party
💡 Example: If a major retailer forgets to renew its domain, causing all online orders to stop. It takes 48 hours to restore services, resulting in thousands of dollars in lost sales.
How to Avoid This Mistake:
✔ Enable Auto-Renewal with your domain registrar.
✔ Register domains for multiple years in advance.
✔ Use a Managed Domain Service that monitors renewal deadlines.
📌 Recommended Solution: MackNet’s Domain Management Services ensure your domains never expire by handling renewals and expiration monitoring.
2. Using Personal Emails for Domain Registration
The Problem:
Many businesses register domains using personal or employee emails. If the employee leaves the company or the email account is lost, it can be difficult to regain access to the domain.
✔ Loss of control over domain settings
✔ Risk of hijacking if personal email accounts are compromised
✔ Difficulty in transferring ownership if login credentials are lost
💡 Example: A company lost access to its domain when the employee who registered it left the company without sharing login details.
How to Avoid This Mistake:
✔ Use a business email address (e.g., domains@yourcompany.com).
✔ Store domain login credentials in a secure password manager.
✔ Assign multiple administrators to domain accounts.
📌 Recommended Solution: MackNet’s Domain Management Services ensure secure access & recovery options for all your registered domains.
3. Not Enabling WHOIS Privacy Protection
The Problem:
By default, domain ownership details (name, email, phone number) are publicly available in the WHOIS database. Cybercriminals scrape this information to:
✔ Send phishing emails & domain transfer scams
✔ Steal domain credentials & hijack websites
✔ Sell fake renewal notices to businesses
💡 Example: A company received fake renewal invoices from a scammer impersonating its domain registrar. Employees paid the invoice, not realizing it was a scam.
How to Avoid This Mistake:
✔ Enable WHOIS Privacy Protection to hide domain ownership details.
✔ Use a trusted domain registrar that offers privacy protection.
✔ Educate employees about domain-related phishing scams.
📌 Recommended Solution: MackNet’s Domain Registration Services include WHOIS Privacy Protection to keep your data secure.
4. Ignoring DNS Security (DNSSEC & Redundancy)
The Problem:
Many businesses don’t secure their Domain Name System (DNS), making them vulnerable to:
✔ DNS hijacking – Attackers redirect visitors to fake websites.
✔ DDoS attacks – Cybercriminals flood DNS servers, causing downtime.
✔ Email spoofing & fraud – Hackers manipulate DNS records to impersonate businesses.
💡 Example: A company suffered a DNS hijack, where attackers redirected its website visitors to a fake login page to steal customer credentials.
How to Avoid This Mistake:
✔ Enable DNSSEC (Domain Name System Security Extensions) to prevent DNS hijacking.
✔ Use redundant DNS servers to ensure high availability.
✔ Monitor DNS changes regularly to detect suspicious activity.
📌 Recommended Solution: MackNet’s Managed DNS Services include DNSSEC security & multi-location DNS hosting for maximum protection.
5. Registering Only One Domain Variation
The Problem:
Many businesses register only one domain name (e.g., company.com) and ignore alternative versions. This allows:
✔ Competitors to register similar domains & redirect traffic
✔ Cybercriminals to create phishing websites using your brand name
✔ Lost website traffic due to typos & domain misspellings
💡 Example: A bank registered bankname.com but didn’t secure bankname.net. Hackers used the unregistered domain to create a phishing site, tricking customers into entering their credentials.
How to Avoid This Mistake:
✔ Register multiple domain variations (.com, .net, .eu, etc.).
✔ Secure common typos & abbreviations of your brand name.
✔ Use domain forwarding to direct all variations to your main website.
Conclusion: Secure Your Domain with Best Practices
✅ Enable auto-renewal to prevent domain expiration.
✅ Use business emails for registration to maintain full control.
✅ Activate WHOIS Privacy Protection to prevent scams.
✅ Secure DNS settings with DNSSEC to stop hijacking attacks.
✅ Register multiple domain variations to protect your brand.
🔹 Want to protect your domain portfolio?
At MackNet, we provide Domain Management, DNS Security, WHOIS Protection, and Domain Monitoring to keep your business safe from cyber threats.
📩 Contact us today for complete domain security solutions!
