Cyber squatting is the registration of a domain name, which is deceptively similar or identical to that of a well known trademark in order to sell it back to the lawful owner of such mark.
Often true owners have been compelled and constrained to pay hefty ransoms in order to get their trademarks back from the wrongdoer who got the domains registered with established brand names.
In this background the Congress enacted the Anti Cyber Squatting Consumer Protection Act of 1999 to supplement the federal trademark law. The purpose of this law is to protect trademark owners from the piracy of cyber squatters.
In an action under the Act the aggrieved trademark owner must demonstrate that the domain name owner has used his distinctive mark to make wrongful gains from the same.
The relief in favor of the aggrieved trademark owner includes forfeiture or cancellation of the domain name or transfer of the domain name in favor of the trademark owner from the cyber squatter.
