Tag Archives: .HK

Domain Name Registrants, Domain Name Registrars, Domain Name Registry

HKIRC Announces .hk DNSSEC Signed

Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation - HKIRC - logoHong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC) announced on 31 May the signing of DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC) for .hk and.香港 domain name. The DNSSEC-signed .hk was enabled at the Internet’s root which hugely improves the security and integrity of Internet communications and transaction data records.

The successful deployment of DNSSEC and the setup of the chain of trust with root mean HKIRC is embarking on DNS data validation with trusted data source at the top of the Domain Name Systems (DNS) for .hk. Once DNS data is digitally signed with DNSSEC, the authenticity can be validated such that any modification on domain name data records will be detected. With DNSSEC, the identifier of Internet domains can be further secured to protect business and end users transacting on .hk domain names.

“Hong Kong as the global financial hub is prone to cyber security concerns, especially for businesses in today’s connected world. Therefore, the secure administration of domain name infrastructure is crucial to the Internet community,” said Mr Leo Lam, Chief Executive Officer of HKIRC. “With the signing of DNSSEC for the .hk , we expect to see more collaboration within the Internet community to embrace the technology for better Internet security.”

HKIRC’s signing of DNSSEC was supported by ICANN. Dr Richard Lamb, Senior Program Manager of DNSSEC, commented, “The security of .hk domain infrastructure is enhanced as a result of the enablement of DNSSEC at root zone, which helps promote a stable and interoperable environment for both local and global Internet communities.”

HKIRC, the administrator for .hk domain names, has always put Internet security and service availability as our top priority for our community. The regular replacement of DNSSEC keys will be done annually. This will ensure a secure DNS standard supporting the secure transfer of online data.

The deployment of DNSSEC is now a reality for .hk. We would like to call for collaboration with domain registrars and Internet stakeholders in Hong Kong to include DNSSEC deployment in their development schedule. By working together, we could further our commitment to foster a safe Internet environment on a secured DNS for .hk — a core part of Internet’s global addressing system in the internet world.

 

About HKIRC

Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC) is a non-profit-distributing, non-statutory company limited by guarantee designated by the Government of the HKSAR to undertake the administration of Internet domain names under the .hk and .香港 country code top level domain. HKIRC provides registration services for English domain names ending with .com.hk, .org.hk, .net.hk, .edu.hk, .gov.hk, .idv.hk, .hk and Chinese domain names ending with .公司.香港, .組織.香港, .網絡.香港, .教育.香港, .政府.香港, .個人.香港, .香港, and other domains to be introduced from time to time in Hong Kong.

Domain Name Registrants, Domain Name Registrars, Domain Name Registry

HKIRC Announces Launch of .hk WATCH Service – Cost-effective Way To Protect Online Brand

Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation - HKIRC - logo[news release] Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC) today announced the launch of .hk WATCH, the first .hk domain name monitoring service for brand owners around the world. With this new service, HKIRC will protect brand owners from possible abuse of their brands.

Cyber security incidents have continued to increase in recent years. According to the latest Global State of Information Security Survey conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)1, the number of security incidents detected climbed to 42.8 million this year, an increase of 48 per cent from 2013. Domain names are the most important form of online Intellectual Property (IP), as they represent a company’s online identity and business trademark. Therefore, domain name dispute resolution continues to soar. According to the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre, 170 out of 463 arbitration cases related to domain names were found in 2013, representing a 46 per cent increase compared to 2012.

1 The Global State of Information Security® Survey 2015.

“Over the past few years, concerns about infringement using domain names has been on the rise, as more and more global brands have discovered that their domain names have been registered for malicious activities,” explained Jonathan Shea, CEO of HKIRC. “Brand infringers or cybersquatters use the brand names maliciously or even mimic a reputable company’s domain name, creating confusion for the public. In return, this impacts a company’s brand reputation, business and customer loyalty.”

The .hk WATCH service closely monitors .hk domain names to identify those which are identical, similar or feature common misspellings of a name, trademark or service mark, as well as those combining prefix/ suffix “wildcards” with trademarks, effectively tackling possible attempts of .hk domain names being used for cybersquatting and typosquatting activities.

This service also provides an initial report for subscribers, showing existing .hk domain names which resemble the brand name(s) or mark(s). The search runs daily, checking for newly registered .hk domain name that meets the search criteria. It keeps brand owners updated in a timely manner, alerting them if there is malicious activity.

“Deploying .hk WATCH is the first step which provides an easy and affordable way for businesses to protect their online Intellectual Property, providing early notification (or warning) of online brand infringement and helping maintain full control over the brand worldwide,” said Shea.

The .hk WATCH service is now available to all brand owners. Please contact .hk registrar for details. Currently, the HKIRC Accredited Registrars below are providing this service.

About HKIRC
Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC) is a non-profit-distributing, non-statutory company limited by guarantee designated by the Government of the HKSAR to undertake the administration of Internet domain names under the .hk and .香港 country code top level domain. HKIRC provides registration services for English domain names ending with .com.hk, .org.hk, .net.hk, .edu.hk, .gov.hk, .idv.hk, .hk and Chinese domain names ending with .公司.香港, .組織.香港, .網絡.香港, .教育.香港, .政府.香港, .個人.香港, .香港, and other domains to be introduced from time to time in Hong Kong.

This HKIRC news release was sourced from:
https://www.hkirc.hk/content.jsp?id=63#!/&in=/company_info/pressrelease.jsp?item=492

Domain Name Registrants, Domain Name Registrars, Domain Name Registry

HKIRC Launches .hk LOCK: Better protection for .hk websites as the Internet becomes less secure

Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation - HKIRC - logo[news release] Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC) today announced the launch of .hk LOCK, a new security measure for .hk domain name owners. Through the service, .hk domain name owners will have the ability to lock their domain name server (DNS) records and prevent any unauthorised changes. By offering this service, HKIRC aims to deliver an additional layer of security for .hk domain names to make .hk websites safer, contributing to a more secure and trusted place for online business. Continue reading HKIRC Launches .hk LOCK: Better protection for .hk websites as the Internet becomes less secure →

Cybersecurity

Full Hong Kong Chinese Domains Now Available

Domain names in Chinese for the Hong Kong IDN .香港 are now available the Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC) has announced. The registry says this means that all registrants can now register a pair of English .HK and Chinese .香港domain names.

“Taking the positive response already received during the half-month soft launch period as an indication, public registration will bring substantial benefits in terms of registered trademark protection, online brand awareness and expansion to the Chinese-speaking market. This is truly a milestone for Hong Kong’s Internet development,” said Mr Jonathan Shea, CEO of HKIRC.

The introduction of .香港 empowers the use of easy-to-remember and easy-to-understand Chinese words as the domain names for websites. Netizens can type Chinese .香港 domain names in the Internet address bar directly for website browsing. Chinese-speaking Internet users can access the web much easier, hence opening up huge potential market opportunities. With support for both simplified and traditional Chinese characters, .香港substantively popularises the use of the Internet.

For business users who have well-established Chinese brand names, such as 白蘭氏.香港 (brandsworld.hk) and梁蘇記.公司.香港 (leungsokee.com.hk), it would be more convenient for users to search for their sites in Chinese than to remember the sometimes meaningless transliterated names based on Chinese pronunciation. Moreover, the Chinese language has a much larger pool of characters than English. Hence, more creative combinations are possible when you consider a domain name in Chinese rather than English. Duplication of names can be minimised at the same time.

The Chinese .香港 domain name is now open for public registration on a first-come, first-served basis. In keeping with the bilingual culture of Hong, registrations for a Chinese .香港 domain and an English .hk domain name of the same category will cost the price of one. This effectively halves the prices of .hk and .香港 domain names.

Asia Registry logoTo register your Hong Kong domain names, check out Asia Registry here.

Domain Name Registrants, Domain Name Registrars, Domain Name Registry

Chinese IDN Priority Launch for .HK Domain Holders

The Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Ltd (HKIRC) announced last week that current English .HK domain holders will be offered priority to register for a full Chinese .香港domain name free of charge during the Pre-Launch Priority Registration period from 22 February to 10 March, 2011.

The newly registered Chinese .香港 domain name will be bundled with the English .HK domain name. Customers are entitled to renew these two domain names together in the future for the price of one.

Asia Registry logoChinese .香港 domain name can be registered via the official website www.hkdnr.hk or by contacting Asia Registry here.

Domain Name Registrants, Domain Name Registrars, Domain Name Registry

Domain Name Update for .HK and .CN

Developments over the last 12 months in the Chinese and Hong Kong ccTLDs are outlined in this article by lawyers from the Hong Kong-based law firm Mayer Brown JSM. The article also gives a quick overview of the new measures and policies adopted by the China Internet Network Information Centre (CNNIC) and Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC).

The article covers internationalised domain names, the measures introduced in China to strengthen the regulatory framework such as dealing with obscene and illegal content complaints and verification of registrant identities, security and dispute resolution policis.

To read the article in full by Kenny Wong and Alan C.W. Chiu from the law firm Mayer Brown JSM, see www.mayerbrown.com/publications/article.asp?id=10228.

Asia Registry logoTo register your .CN or .HK domain name, check out Asia Registry here.

Cybersecurity

.HK Registry Applies for Chinese Character Version of TLD

The registry for .HK (Hong Kong) is introducing internationalised domain names with plans to introduce the Chinese version of the .HK country code and allowing all registrants with an existing .HK domain name to get the IDN version for free.

The Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation, the .HK registry, has applied to ICANN to introduce the Chinese character version, and if successful, with offer a buy one, get the other free with registrants receiving both versions of the domain name.

Since 2007 registrants of .HK domain names have been able to register all but the .HK part of the domain name in Chinese characters, and should ICANN grant HKIRC the Chinese character version of the .HK ccTLD it will mean registrants can have complete domain names in Chinese characters.

Asia Registry logoTo register your .HK domain name, check out Asia Registry here.