Web guides

Managing government domain names

Overview

Government organisations should use a .govt.nz domain as their primary domain for websites and email. This gives the public confidence in the trust and integrity of communications from government.

This guide is designed to help you select appropriate .govt.nz domain names and to follow good practice domain name management for all your domains.

Index

Applying for a new .govt.nz domain

It is important to understand that the .govt.nz domain is moderated and your request for a new .govt.nz domain can be declined. Eligibility for .govt.nz domains is outlined in the .govt.nz domain name moderation policy and you should read and understand this policy early in the process of selecting your website domain to ensure that you don’t have to change your approach later on.

This guide is designed to help you understand the moderation policy and how to avoid having your request for a new .govt.nz domain declined because it falls outside the scope of the policy.

As soon as there may be a requirement for a new website within your agency, you can start discussing your options for domain names with the .govt.nz domain name moderator as they can help you select a suitable domain name. Contact moderator@dia.govt.nz for assistance.

Requests for .govt.nz domains from central government agencies are moderated by the Department of Internal Affairs, requests from local and regional government agencies are moderated by the Association of Local Government Information Managers (ALGIM).

Things to think about before you apply

It is also a good idea to register the .co.nz and .org.nz versions of your domain at the same time as you register your .govt.nz domain. Redirect these to your primary domain, to avoid other parties cybersquatting, link farming or phishing using domains that are similar to yours.

You can check the WHOIS record for any domain to see if it has been registered and who it was registered by. For domains in the .nz namespace, use the search tool on the Domain Name Commissioner’s website (www.dnc.org.nz).

Consider developing a policy for domain name management in your organisation that states when a new domain may be required, when to use an existing domain, when to secure a name outside of the .govt.nz domain and how your domains will be managed on an ongoing basis.

Domains for projects and initiatives

Most requests for new .govt.nz domain names are for new projects, and initiatives in government. These are referred to in the .govt.nz domain name moderation policy as generic names and must meet specific requirements in order to be eligible for a .govt.nz domain.

A generic name describes a particular service or function of government. This means that the public can interpret them as belonging to the whole of government. Generic names must be specific enough to avoid confusion with other services and functions within government.

Your organisation will only be eligible for a new generic third level .govt.nz name if the project, campaign or initiative is:

Pan-departmental (i.e. more than one agency is involved), and;
Of national significance (i.e. not limited to a particular area or region).

If you do not meet these criteria, you should use a fourth level domain for your site (for example ‘initiative.youragency.govt.nz or youragency.govt.nz/initiative).

If you think you qualify for a generic domain name, the next step is to select a name that meets the following requirements:

Specific (i.e. unlikely to be confused with other existing or future services across government), and:
Descriptive (i.e. the domain name describes the purpose of the site)

For example, if the purpose of the site was to provide compliance information from more than one agency, for a particular audience (e.g. compliance for farms) a name like ‘compliance.govt.nz’ would not be considered to be specific or descriptive, as many parts of government (both central and local) are responsible for compliance across a much broader range of activities. A name like ‘farmcompliance.govt.nz’ would be both specific and descriptive in this situation.

Make sure that your domain name and your communications strategy are aligned. Will your domain name work in the media? Alternatively, is the brand you are considering going to fit within the scope of the .govt.nz domain name moderation policy?

Think about your programme domain name and where the programme will be in a year’s time. If you create a name around a time bound brand or short term campaign, it is likely that the domain name will become out-of-date and your website a museum of information. If you create a website for each campaign you could end up with multiple out-of-date websites. This doesn’t help the public find your information and doesn’t reflect well on your organisation.

Examples of good generic domain names:

Joint agency initiatives - sustainability.govt.nz, business.govt.nz
Single agency sites with national significance - roadsafety.govt.nz, immigration.govt.nz

Try to match your domain with what the initiative or programme will be commonly known as:

workingforfamilies.govt.nz not wff.govt.nz
stv.govt.nz not singletransferablevote.govt.nz

Domains for new organisations and business units

As government agencies merge or new agencies and business units are created, there may be a need for a new .govt.nz domain for the new government entity. Your choice of domain name should reflect the official name of the new entity and should avoid confusion with other government agencies.

Have a talk to the relevant people in your organisation (often communications or business specialists) about what your entity will be commonly known as. Will the media refer to the entity by its acronym or an abbreviation of its name? Pick a name that is close to what the entity will be commonly known as, so that people have a chance of guessing your domain name correctly.

A good domain name should reflect your agency’s name (in full or acronym).

For example: beehive.govt.nz, ird.govt.nz, familiescommission.govt.nz, linz.govt.nz, ero.govt.nz

When to use a fourth level domain (sub-domain)

A fourth level domain is a sub-domain on one of your existing domains (for example ‘initiative.youragency.govt.nz or youragency.govt.nz/initiative). It is possible to use a fourth level domain, even if the two websites are completely separate.

You may choose any name at the fourth level of one of your existing domains, providing it will not bring the government into dispute, so this is a good option for single agency brands or initiatives as well as programmes which either have a short life span, or logically fall under a single agency or an existing sector site (such as business.govt.nz).

Fourth level domains are also a good choice for business units

There are a number of benefits using a fourth level domain:

They build on your existing brand, using your profile and the trust that you have developed with your main agency website.
Findability of new sub domain sites is strong as they leverage off your existing ranking in search engines.
They are a good way to reduce your operational overheads as they carry no extra cost and they are easier to maintain, as you don’t have to renew their registration or pay for the non .govt.nz extensions.
If you have already registered the non .govt.nz domains for your third level domain, you don’t need to worry about securing any additional domains, reducing the risk of other parties cybersquatting, link farming or phishing using domains that are similar to yours.
fourth level domains are also more forgiving of transient campaigns and initiatives.

For example: Instead of having multiple sites for different topics use fourth level domains - jobs.agency.govt.nz, policy.agency.govt.nz, maps.agency.govt.nz or agency.govt.nz/jobs etc.

Remember, fourth domains are powerful enough to stand out by themselves and help users to remember the domain and connect the campaign to your organisation. Think of the New Zealand Fire Service campaign – http://homesprinklers.fire.org.nz

Registration costs for .govt.nz domains

The registration costs for all .govt.nz domains are paid by the Department of Internal Affairs. These domains are provided free of charge to government agencies and are renewed automatically every month.

The Department of Internal Affairs also provides free DNS hosting for .govt.nz domains. For further information about this, contact moderator@dia.govt.nz

General advice about selecting a good domain name

The advice below applies in all situations and for both third and fourth level domains.

Make your domain unique to avoid confusion

Check to see what domain names exist so you can pick a name that isn’t being used. Also, try to avoid having a domain name too similar to one that is already being used by either a government or private sector organisation, so you don’t confuse users or inadvertently lose website traffic to another site.

You can check which domain names have already been allocated (and who they are owned by) on the Domain Name Commissioner’s website (www.dnc.org.nz).

Keep it simple

Users may try to guess your domain name or email address, so keep your domain name simple and try to avoid:

Long domains, as they can be hard to remember and easy to mistype. For example: departmentofforestryandfishing.govt.nz
Easily misspelt words, as they will cause problems for your customers trying to reach you via a search engine or guessing your name in the browser address bar. For example: enrolments.govt.nz (one or two Ls in enrolments?)
A mix of words and acronyms, as they look messy and are confusing. For example: huntingdepartmentnz.govt.nz
Hyphens or other symbols (e.g. $), as they add complexity and people may forget to use them. For example: fuel$aver.govt.nz

Set up a www redirect for your website

Users may try to access your site both with and without the www. prefix. Decide which version will be your primary domain and make sure that you have a redirect from one to the other. For example: www.newzealand.govt.nz should automatically redirect to newzealand.govt.nz

Avoid cluster registrations

Because .govt.nz is a moderated domain, you don’t need to register lots of variations on your domain name (cluster registrations), such as misspellings or variations on names, to prevent other parties cybersquatting, link farming or phishing.
Cluster registrations aren’t encouraged as they confuse customers, dilute your brand and contribute to the financial overhead of government. Remember, if your domain name is unambiguous and simple, variations aren’t needed.

For example: guyfawkessafety.govt.nz, guyfawkesafety.govt.nz or getthrough.govt.nz, getthru.govt.nz

Creating a domain name policy

Choosing and maintaining your domain name(s) is an integral part of managing your web presence - how you’re found and remembered by your customers. Ideally you should have a domain name policy which provides a consistent, defined approach to choosing and managing your domain names and which documents how you will manage those domains over time.

A policy helps you manage the risk of having multiple, variably branded websites, with short-term life spans. Proactive domain name management also ensures good processes for registering and managing domain names and their records.

Consistent web presence

Have a policy that outlines roles and responsibilities and your approach to domain name creation and management, to prevent a fractured, unprofessional look for your agency on the web.

Manage your registered domains to avoid risk

Have a record of all your domains and (for non-.govt.nz domains) know when they are due for renewal. It is a good idea to ensure that someone is responsible for this task.
Ensure that you use a reliable domain name registrar to secure any non .govt.nz domains (e.g. .co.nz/) that your agency uses.
Reduce the risk of cybersquatting, link farming or phishing by using .govt.nz as your primary domain and consider securing the equivalent .org.nz and .co.nz domains as well, to prevent them being misused.
Reduce costs
Fewer domains means less overhead, in management and DNS hosting (for .govt.nz) and in registration charges (for other types of domain name).
Make sure you cancel your domains if they are no longer required.
Search engine optimisation
Most people use a search engine to find websites. Use fourth level domain names for new projects or existing functions where you can, as your existing site will already be indexed and the sub-domain will inherit this ranking, making it easier for users to find your site.
.govt.nz domains often rank higher in search engines so consider using one as your primary domain.

Resolving issues with non .govt.nz domains

When faced with cybersquatting, link farming or phishing which appear to be exploiting a New Zealand government name or trademark, your agency has a number of options to explore. You should involve your legal team as soon as you suspect this kind of problem.

Cease and desist letters

If there is sufficient legal reason to feel that a department or agency's legal rights are being infringed, the department or agency could seek to identify the domain name owner (sometimes easily done, sometimes not) and send a cease and desist letter, requesting non-use or relinquishment of the domain name. Whether that approach is appropriate will require consideration of all relevant circumstances.

.nz Dispute Resolution Service

If the domain name is a .nz name, the department or agency can consider utilising the .nz Dispute Resolution Service (DRS). The DRS policy allows a complainant to lodge a complaint against a respondent who has registered a domain name where:

the complainant has rights in respect of a name or mark which is identical or similar to the domain name; and
the domain name, in the hands of the respondent, is an "unfair registration".

For more information on this process, see the Domain Name Commission website.

.com and similar domain names

If the domain name is a .biz, .com, .info, .name, .net, or .org top-level domain, then ICANN's Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy applies. Information on that policy can be found here: http://www.icann.org/udrp/udrp.htm. Its essence is captured in these paragraphs:

"All registrars in the .biz, .com, .info, .name, .net, and .org top-level domains follow the Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (often referred to as the "UDRP"). Under the policy, most types of trademark-based domain-name disputes must be resolved by agreement, court action, or arbitration before a registrar will cancel, suspend, or transfer a domain name. Disputes alleged to arise from abusive registrations of domain names (for example, cybersquatting) may be addressed by expedited administrative proceedings that the holder of trademark rights initiates by filing a complaint with an approved dispute-resolution service provider.

To invoke the policy, a trademark owner should either (a) file a complaint in a court of proper jurisdiction against the domain-name holder (or where appropriate an in-rem action concerning the domain name) or (b) in cases of abusive registration submit a complaint to an approved dispute-resolution service provider … ."

Flags, Emblems, and Names Protection Act 1981

It is possible that issues may arise regarding potential contravention of section 15 of the Flags, Emblems, and Names Protection Act 1981 by the use of "government sounding" domain names for another business. Section 15 makes it an offence for any person (known as the "advertiser") to publish or cause to be published any advertisement that is likely to cause any person to believe, contrary to the fact, that the advertiser has supplied, is supplying or will supply any goods or services of a Government department or has carried out, is carrying out or will carry out any work for any Government department.

"Advertisement" is defined broadly to mean "any words, whether written or printed or spoken, and any pictorial representation or design or device, and any visual image, used to notify the availability or explain the use or promote the sale of any goods or services, or to obtain work".

Whether this section is infringed will depend on the circumstances surrounding any instance of cybersquatting and the use to which the domain is put.

Contravention of this section may provide an affected New Zealand government department with significant leverage over a registrant of a .nz domain name, or over a New Zealander who registers an infringing .com or other domain name. However, territorial/jurisdictional issues could arise in respect of a .com or other domain name registered by an overseas registrant.

Litigation

The final adversarial option is litigation (e.g., civil proceedings for passing off or breach of trade mark, where applicable) or (if the above Act has been breached) prosecution. Under section 24 of the Act, individuals face a fine not exceeding $5,000 while body corporates face a fine not exceeding $50,000 and, if the offence is a continuing one (as cybersquatting would be) a further fine not exceeding $5,000 for every day during which the offence has continued.

Litigation would, however, be time-consuming and expensive and, depending on the circumstances, may or may not succeed. Moreover, jurisdictional complications would arise in respect of overseas registrants.

Paying out

The final option is simply paying out the owner of the domain names in question. While a one-off payment may sound like a low-cost solution to the problem, it needs to be considered carefully because it raises wider all-of-government issues given the prospect for strategic and wider-ranging behaviour by unscrupulous registrants.

Always seek legal advice before dealing with domain name disputes.

Glossary

Additional information about the terms used in this guide.

Second level domain: A second level domain is the category of domain within the country code (e.g. .govt.nz). For New Zealand, second level domains are allocated by InternetNZ. Some second level domains are moderated (.bank.nz, .iwi.nz, .govt.nz, etc) and some are unmoderated (.co.nz, .org.nz, etc) which means that names in that second level domain are allocated on a first come, first served basis.
Third level domain: A third level domain is the unique name that comes before the second level domain (e.g. dia.govt.nz, trademe.co.nz). If you register a third level domain, you then have the exclusive right to use that domain for your website and email.
Fourth level domain: Registrants can divide their third level domain into sub domains, known as fourth level domains (e.g. careers.justice.govt.nz, homesprinklers.fire.org.nz, etc). There are no restrictions on how government organisations set up and use fourth level domains, providing they are not likely to bring the government into disrepute. fourth level domains can be useful for managing sub-sites and test environments or for providing easy-to-remember campaign domains.
Cybersquatting: Cybersquatting (also known as domain squatting) is registering, trafficking in, or using a domain name with bad faith intent to profit from the goodwill of a trademark belonging to someone else. The cybersquatter may offer to sell the domain to the person or company who owns a trademark contained within the name at an inflated price. For more information see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cybersquatting
DNS: The DNS (domain name system) is the system that translates domain names and email addresses into the relevant IP address. DNS information is hosted on a name server and the DNS record for a domain will comprise one or more A records (for websites) and MX records (for email). For more information see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name_system
Link farming: A link farm is a site that consists entirely of links (often automatically populated) designed to manipulate search engine rankings or drive traffic to other sites. Cybersquatters may host link farms on their domains. For more information see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Link_farming
Moderation: Moderation ensures that registrants of a closed second level domain (e.g. .govt.nz) meet the requirements of that domain. The .govt.nz domain is moderated so that users of web sites in the .govt.nz namespace can have confidence that they are dealing with a government agency. This includes approving initial registration of names and may include monitoring and management of the space to ensure that registrants remain appropriate for the space.
Phishing: Phishing is the attempt to acquire sensitive information (such as usernames, passwords or credit card details) by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. This can be done by using a domain that is similar to a high profile existing domain or by disguising the domain used. For more information see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phishing
Registry: The authoritative record of .nz domain names and the source of name server information for the .nz DNS. The registry records information about domains in that registry, including registrant contact details and the IP addresses for that domain’s name servers.
Registrar: A registrar is an entity authorised to access the .nz register to register and maintain domain names on behalf of registrants.
Registrant: The registrant is the person or organisation who has registered a particular third level domain, giving them the right to use it.