Move over .com and .org. Google just introduced eight new top-level domains that can be used for websites or email addresses.
Drumroll, please …
Introducing eight new top-level domains
- .dad
- .esq
- .prof
- .PhD
- .nexus
- .foo
- .zip
- .mov
OK, I can see some use for those. The lawyer, doctor and professor in your life will be happy. But .foo?
Cybersecurity researchers are worried about two in particular
Those are .zip and .mov. Why? Because ZIP and MOV are file types, too.
And using these file types as top-level domains could be risky since websites and social media will convert anything ending in .zip or .mov to a link.
Say, for example, there are instructions on a website that reference a file called “instructionmanual.zip.” The website will now convert this file name to a link automatically.
That means anyone could buy that same name as a URL — and park whatever they want there. Think malware. Hit that link and you have a keylogger or worse. Yikes.
There are nearly 1,600 top-level domains
You know the ones like .com, .org, .us and .edu. Here are some you probably didn’t know about. Maybe this list will come in handy at your next trivia night.
.actor, .auction, .bible, .buzz, .cheap, .eat, .fish, .guitars, .horse, .kim (really!), .lol, .monster, .pizza, .radio, .skin, .wtf.