Fake company attempts to seize rare two-letter domain name KS.com, ruled as reverse domain name hijacking

In a highly-watched domain name arbitration case, the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center recently ruled on the rare two-letter domain name KS.com, finding that the domain name dispute request filed by the complainant in this case lacked factual basis and ruled that it constituted reverse domain name hijacking.

The disputed domain name KS.com was registered in 1993 and was long held by American computer scientist Robert Akscyn. He is one of the founders of "Knowledge Systems Incorporated" (founded in 1985), which originated from research results of Carnegie Mellon University and developed an early hypertext system KMS.

In February 2025, an entity calling itself "Knowledge Systems Inc." filed a complaint with WIPO, requesting that KS.com be transferred to its name on the grounds that the domain name was confusingly similar to its company name and brand, and accused the holder of "illegally hijacking" the domain name. The complainant also presented a $3 million "ransom email" allegedly sent by the holder, intending to prove that the respondent held the domain name in bad faith.

Investigation and dispute: The identity of the complainant is in doubt, and the evidence is full of doubts

The case quickly exposed many problems during the trial:

The so-called "Knowledge Systems Inc." complainant's registration information was confusing, and no active registration records could be found in the British, California or Texas government databases;

The cited US trademark registration had expired in 2009, and the original registrant was the Pennsylvania company where the respondent was located;

The complainant failed to provide any evidence that it actually used the domain name or brand, and the LinkedIn page it provided lacked substantive content;

The key evidence - the so-called "$3 million request email" format did not match Gmail and was determined to be a forged document.

The respondent submitted more than 100 pieces of evidence to prove that it has been the legal registrant of the domain name since the 1990s and has continued to maintain the operation of its company "Knowledge Systems Incorporated". Arbitration expert W. Scott Blackmer ultimately ruled that the complainant failed to meet any of the conditions for UDRP dispute transfer, but instead deliberately falsified facts and abused the arbitration procedure.

Decision: Clearly identified reverse domain name hijacking

The WIPO panel determined that the so-called complainant in this case had fabricated information, misled the registrar, and submitted forged evidence in an attempt to illegally seize the valuable assets of the legitimate registrant through the UDRP procedure. The ruling clearly pointed out that this behavior is a typical reverse domain name hijacking and constitutes improper harassment to the domain name holder.

Two-letter .com domain names such as KS.com have extremely high market value and are often coveted by investors, brands, and even criminals. This case once again shows that domain name holders should actively respond to UDRP complaints and keep complete historical records. At the same time, arbitration institutions are becoming increasingly intolerant of abuse of policies.