Competition Bureau Issues Warning to Canadians about Misleading Mailings for Internet Domain Name Registrations

OTTAWA, July 18, 2001 — The Competition Bureau issued a warning today to Canadian consumers and businesses that own internet domain names to take caution before paying what appear to be invoices from the "Internet Registry of Canada" for the registration or re-registration of their domain names.

The "Internet Registry of Canada" is not certified by the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA), the body officially sanctioned to administer the registration of the ".ca" domain name in Canada. Only CIRA Certified Registrars can apply to CIRA for registration of ".ca" domain names. For a list of CIRA certified registrars please visit their web site at http://www.cira.ca.

Complaints received by the Competition Bureau indicate that the mailings from the "Internet Registry of Canada" give the impression that it is affiliated with the Government of Canada or that it is an officially sanctioned agency registering domain names in Canada. The "Internet Registry of Canada" is not associated with any government agency.

The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency that promotes and maintains fair competition so that all Canadians can benefit from competitive prices, product choice and quality service. It oversees the application of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Textile Labelling Act and the Precious Metals Marking Act.

For more information, please contact:

Charles Bergeron
Senior Communications Advisor
Competition Bureau
819-956-0774 or 613-296-2187 (cell.)

General Public Enquiries, please contact:

Information Center
1-800-348-5358