GoDaddy Challenges HC Order Targeting Fake Domain Names: Report

Internet domain name registrar GoDaddy, along with domain registrars Namecheap and Hosting Concepts, has reportedly challenged a Delhi High Court ruling from December 2025 that implicated industry-wide directions applicable to all DNRs. 

As per a report by Reuters, the company argues that the court’s ruling, which aims at curbing fake, brand-impersonating websites, undermines user privacy, imposes impractical compliance obligations, and could have global implications for domain name governance.

The appeal is pending before a larger bench of the HC, which is scheduled to hear the matter on July 16.

The directives stem from a December 2025 Delhi HC judgment in a suit filed by over 20 companies, including Amazon, McDonald’s and Microsoft, against fraudulent websites impersonating their brands. 

The court introduced 14 measures to tighten domain registration norms in a bid to curb impersonations.

As per the report, GoDaddy said that eliminating default privacy features will force the public disclosure of names, addresses, phone numbers, and emails belonging to ordinary website owners. 

This could expose them to “foreseeable privacy and security risks” like stalking and harassment and runs counter to India’s data protection laws, GoDaddy argued. It added that DNRs are not equipped to determine whether a party has “legitimate interest” or not when a domain name owner’s contact details are requested. 

Furthermore, GoDaddy said that it would be “virtually impossible to register a domain name containing an English word that does not overlap with a registered trademark,” according to Reuters. 

It also noted that website domains are registered globally and hence the order forces it to regulate domains outside India as well. The regulations are “commercially destabilising,” GoDaddy claimed, and could lead it as well as other DNRs to “exit India”. 

According to Reuters, an IT Ministry document from 2023 submitted to the judge that the government is concerned about the “issue of domain name abuse” and “lack of stringent verification”. The Home Ministry, too, told the judge that it believes cybercrime investigations should have access to website registration details. 

At the broader level, the Centre has been expanding its oversight on digital media platforms. Earlier in March, the MeitY had proposed amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. 

The framework tightens content takedown obligations for social media intermediaries like, Meta, Google, and X. Platforms hosting information that may be used to commit “unlawful acts” will be required to remove such content within three hours of receiving “actual knowledge”.

The changes, issued under Section 87 of the IT Act, 2000, proposes to make intermediaries legally bound to comply with clarifications, advisories, orders, directions, standard operating procedures, codes of practice or guidelines issued in relation to the implementation of the rules. 

The Centre was also considering new rules to scrutinise OTT platforms for objectionable content, following the row over comedian Samay Raina’s YouTube series ‘India’s Got Latent’ last year. 

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