Nominet, the Registry responsible for running the .UK country code Top-Level Domain (ccTLD), has published its annual report on .UK domain names that have been suspended due to criminal activity. The report covers the 12 months from 1 November 2023 to 31 October 2024.
According to Nominet, over this 12-month period, it significantly increased its detection and analysis of domain name abuse, resulting in 6,315 sites being suspended in 2024, compared with 2,230 in 2023. In addition, Nominet recorded a higher number of detections from “threat feeds”, and its “coordinated and targeted investigations” resulting in an increase in mass suspensions.
The main abuse trends identified across the .UK extension over the course of the year were as follows:
Chapter 1 Mobile Providers
In 2024, scam calls pretending to be from UK mobile providers affected a growing number of individuals, with fraudsters registering .UK domain names in order to appear legitimate. Nominet suspended 176 domain names that were found to be associated with the scam.
Chapter 2 Fake Education Registrations
Nominet also detected patterns in .UK domain registrations that were designed to imitate genuine UK educational institutions. According to Nominet, there were attempts to entice visitors to provide their personal details to sites that looked identical to that of the genuine educational institution. Nominet subsequently suspended 207 .UK domain names that were falsely presenting themselves as colleges, 80 as universities, and six as schools.
Nominet has also been focusing, with their improved detection of fake fashion brand websites, on .UK websites that falsely claim to be selling “clothing ‘drops’” (the release of new clothing items or collections in limited numbers). The Registry suspended a number of websites in connection with these activities.
Chapter 4 Law Enforcement Takedowns
Nominet continues to work with law enforcement agencies in order to protect users from online crime. When Nominet is alerted to an incident by law enforcement agencies, it works with its registrars to suspend the domain names concerned. Any such suspension is undertaken in accordance with its Criminal Practices Policy.
According to Nominet, 913 domain names were suspended during the 12-month period covered by the report, compared to 1,193 in 2023 – the lowest number of suspensions since Nominet started tracking in 2013. In addition, Nominet collaborated with law enforcement agencies to target illegal streaming sites, which resulted in the shutdown and legal prosecution of unlawful streaming service providers.
As for the future, in the latter half of 2025, Nominet will introduce a new Domain Health Initiative, with the “ambitious aim” of making the .UK domain name space “the most trusted namespace through proactive, proportionate, and collaborative measures". Paul Fletcher, Nominet’s CEO, summed up the Registry’s efforts as follows:
“Our latest report reveals a significant step forward in our ongoing efforts to create a safer digital world. By leveraging advanced threat detection tools and working closely with law enforcement, we’ve not only increased our ability to identify and suspend criminal domains, but we’re also disrupting sophisticated online criminal networks targeting vulnerable people. We’ve seen a marked increase in proactive abuse detection, demonstrating our commitment to protecting internet users from emerging online threats. And we’re going one step further in 2025 and beyond, with a new Domain Health Initiative – which looks to keep .UK’s openness and accessibility – but achieve systemic deterrence against abuse.”
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