09 Nov 2026
Defensive domain registration means registering domain variants of your brand so no one else can use them against you. Done well, it blocks the most likely phishing and lookalike domains. Done badly, it becomes hundreds of domains you pay for every year and never use.
Here is a simple priority matrix to decide which variants to buy, which to monitor and which to skip.
The aim is not to own every possible variant. It is to own the ones attackers are most likely to use and customers are most likely to type. Everything else is better handled by monitoring. See typosquatting guide.
| Priority | Variant type | Example for "brandname" | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Must have | Main brand in .com, .in, .co.in | brandname.com, brandname.in | Register and redirect |
| Must have | Key markets you sell in | brandname.ae, brandname.co.uk | Register |
| High | One-letter typos of the main domain | brandnme.com, branndname.in | Register the top 5 to 10 |
| High | Brand plus risky words if you take payments or logins | brandname-login.com, brandnamepay.in | Register |
| Medium | Product names customers search | productname.in | Register if product is strategic |
| Medium | Hyphenated version | brand-name.com | Register if commonly typed |
| Low | Unrelated new TLDs | brandname.xyz, brandname.shop | Monitor, buy only if abused |
| Low | Every possible typo | Hundreds of combinations | Monitor instead |
Client: FMCG company, Mumbai
Challenge: A previous agency registered over 200 variants across new TLDs, costing lakhs each year, while key typos were missing.
What we did: Priority review using the matrix, dropped low-value TLDs, added missing typos and .in variants, monitoring for the rest.
Results:
Client: UPI payments startup, Bengaluru
Challenge: Launching a consumer app with high phishing risk around "pay" and "login" variants.
What we did: Registered brand in .com, .in, .co.in, top typos and payment-related combos; reject DMARC and redirects on all.
Results:
Defensive registration works when it is focused. Protect your main brand in key extensions, the most likely typos and risky combos. Monitor the long tail and act only when needed.
Flying Stars plans and manages defensive portfolios through domain and trademark protection.
