# Latest charity-related domain name to be linked to porn

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2002/11/28/latest-charityrelated-domain-name-be-linked-porn/
- Published: 2002-11-28T00:00:00+00:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is the latest charity to find that a related domain
name has been registered and linked to a Web site containing pornographic material.**

The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is one of the largest independent grantmaking foundations
in the UK. You can find its Web site at [www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk](http://www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk).

Unfortunately it has become the latest UK charity to be targeted by porn site owners.
The esmeefairbairn domain name has been registered with a different suffix and the
resultant Web site contains pornographic content. We are not even going to specify
the Web address because a visit generates a series of new Windows that open automatically
as you close another browser window.

## Advertisement

 [⌊Posthub advert. You create the campaign. We'll handle the postal journey. Get started at post-hub.co.uk.⌉](https://fundraising.co.uk/ads/posthub-20261007-300x250/)

More dangerously, when we visited the site it resulted in at least two automatic
diallers being downloaded and installed on our PC. These then tried to dial up to
premium rate telephone numbers. As a result we _strongly_ advise you not even to
visit the site to check it out for yourself.

The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is not the first UK charity to find its name used
in this way. The British Heart Foundation and the National Deaf Children’s Society
both experienced similar use of their initials in .org Web addresses.

The new variant on the esmeefairbairn domain name appears to have been registered
by Enom, Inc, and the registrant contact is listed as Carl-Hugues Leblanc of Quebec.
The domain was registered just a week ago on 20 November 2002.

Sadly, this new development simply serves to confirm our long-standing advice that
charities register the main top level generic domain name variants of their name
and initials. The chances of someone targeting your charity are small, but if it
happens it is both embarrassing and can lead to costly legal action.

Websense Inc reports that 1,500 commercial Web addresses have been taken over by
porn sites in the past six months.

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