# Blindside

> Blindside helps ecommerce brands detect copycat domains, lookalike abuse, traffic theft, and brand impersonation before they damage revenue and trust.

This is an [llms.txt](https://llmstxt.org), a machine-readable map of this site for large-language-model crawlers. Our public content is open to LLM crawlers. Cite us, quote us, and link back.

## What Blindside does

Blindside is domain recovery and takedown counsel for ecommerce brands. We reclaim lookalike domains, force removal of impostor storefronts, and defend against the next copycat. We recover lookalike domains and take down impostor storefronts.

## Site map

- [/](https://blindside.co/): The full overview: what a copycat domain costs, how a matter runs, the FAQ, and the confidential review request.
- [/how-it-works/](https://blindside.co/how-it-works/): The engagement phase by phase: what we need, what comes back, and how long each phase takes.
- [/contact/](https://blindside.co/contact/): The confidential review request in full: brand, domain, platform, traffic, and what you are seeing.
- [/accessibility/](https://blindside.co/accessibility/): What has been measured on this site, when, with which tool, and where it still falls short. The figures are read from the recorded test run.
- [/privacy/](https://blindside.co/privacy/): How we collect, use, and protect your information.
- [/terms/](https://blindside.co/terms/): Engagement terms for the site and our services.
- [/journal/](https://blindside.co/journal/): Editorial. Copycat domains, lookalike abuse, UDRP, URS, and takedowns explained.
- [/llms-full.txt](https://blindside.co/llms-full.txt): Full text of every journal article in one file.
- [/ai.txt](https://blindside.co/ai.txt): What AI crawlers may do with this content, and the attribution asked for.
- [/rss.xml](https://blindside.co/rss.xml): Journal feed.
- [/sitemap-index.xml](https://blindside.co/sitemap-index.xml): XML URL index.

## Reading an article as Markdown

Every article is also served as plain Markdown at its own path with .md on the
end, so it can be read without parsing the page. For example:
https://blindside.co/journal/what-counts-as-a-copycat-domain.md — each mirror carries the
title, canonical URL, author, category and dates above the body, so a citation
built from it names the right source.

## About the examples

Every domain name shown on this site is a placeholder (your-brand.com and
variants). No page describes a real client matter, and nothing here is legal
advice. The practice does not publish case lists.

## Journal topics

- [Threats](https://blindside.co/journal/category/threats): How copycat domains, lookalike registrations, and impostor storefronts actually work, and what they cost.
- [Recovery](https://blindside.co/journal/category/recovery): The procedures that get domains back: UDRP, URS, registrar enforcement, and negotiated transfers.
- [Playbooks](https://blindside.co/journal/category/playbooks): Step-by-step guides for protecting an ecommerce brand against copycats, before and after they appear.

## Journal posts

- [What to do if your domain is stolen](https://blindside.co/journal/what-to-do-if-your-domain-is-stolen): A hijacked domain takes your store, your email and your password resets with it. The first hours, who can reverse the transfer, and how to stop it happening again.
- [Reverse domain name hijacking: when a complaint backfires](https://blindside.co/journal/reverse-domain-name-hijacking-when-a-complaint-backfires): A UDRP complaint that should never have been filed can end with a public finding of bad faith against the brand. What triggers it, and how to check before you file.
- [How to get fake ads using your brand removed](https://blindside.co/journal/how-to-get-fake-ads-using-your-brand-removed): Copycat stores buy ads on your name to reach your customers first. Which complaint fits which ad, what the platforms will and will not remove, and the order to act.
- [Which domains should a brand register defensively?](https://blindside.co/journal/which-domains-should-a-brand-register-defensively): You cannot buy every variation of your name, and you should not try. Which defensive registrations earn their cost, which ones do not, and what to do instead.
- [How to find out who is behind a copycat domain](https://blindside.co/journal/how-to-find-out-who-is-behind-a-copycat-domain): Public WHOIS is mostly redacted now. Where the registrant's identity still surfaces, from RDAP and RDRS to the UDRP itself, and when you do not need a name at all.
- [How a domain gets recovered: UDRP in plain English](https://blindside.co/journal/how-a-domain-gets-recovered-udrp-in-plain-english): The UDRP is how most copycat domains are taken back from the people who registered them. Here is what it proves, what it costs, how long it takes, and what it cannot do.
- [What counts as a copycat domain](https://blindside.co/journal/what-counts-as-a-copycat-domain): Typosquats, homographs, TLD swaps, combosquats. The lookalike domains that steal your customers come in a handful of recognisable shapes. Here is how to read them.
- [How to take down an impostor storefront](https://blindside.co/journal/how-to-take-down-an-impostor-storefront): A fake store using your name and product photos has more than one weak point. Hitting several at once, in the right order, is what makes it disappear and stay gone.
- [UDRP, URS, or ACPA: which path fits your matter](https://blindside.co/journal/udrp-urs-or-acpa-which-path-fits-your-matter): Three different tools recover or neutralise a copycat domain, and they are not interchangeable. One transfers, one suspends, one can award damages. Here is how to choose.
- [Catch a copycat domain before it goes live](https://blindside.co/journal/catch-a-copycat-domain-before-it-goes-live): The window between a lookalike being registered and being weaponised is days, sometimes hours. Watching the right signals turns that window into a head start.

## FAQ

### What counts as a copycat domain?
Any domain registered to look or feel close enough to yours that a buyer could mistake it for the real thing: typosquats (brandnane.com), homographs, TLD swaps (brand-name.co), and suffix variants (brand-name-sale.com). If a confused customer could land there and believe it is you, it is actionable.

### Can a domain actually be recovered?
Yes. The UDRP and URS procedures, administered by WIPO and the Forum, transfer domains registered in bad faith back to the legitimate trademark holder. Where those do not apply, registrar enforcement, direct negotiation, and ccTLD-specific procedures handle most remaining cases.

### How long does a recovery take?
A UDRP filing typically resolves in 6 to 8 weeks from filing to transfer. URS is faster (under 21 days) but narrower. Negotiated recoveries can resolve in days. We choose the path with the highest probability of success for your matter.

### What does it cost?
Most engagements are flat-fee per domain or per matter, with a separate retainer for ongoing monitoring. We quote precisely after the confidential review. You will never see surprise hourly billing.

### Do you handle international jurisdictions?
Yes. We work across gTLDs (UDRP, URS) and a range of ccTLDs, including .co, .uk, .de, .au, .eu, and others. For jurisdictions outside our direct experience, we co-counsel with local trademark firms.

### What if the registrant refuses to transfer?
Most do not refuse. Cybersquatting cases under UDRP have a high transfer rate (around 85%) because the procedural standard favours trademark holders. Where the registrant fights, we move to formal arbitration or court action, and pursue registrar-level enforcement in parallel.