I worked as a developer with a Search Engine Optimization firm for some time, where I learned that some shady companies are able to buy domain names that you search for online.

It wasn’t exactly clear to me how this was happening until I chanced across this excellent article on my new favorite blog

How firms steal domain names you research

If you’re too lazy to read the entire thing then here’s a brief summary of how to avoid losing a domain you just searched for.

• Avoid address bar guessing.
• Avoid search engines that don’t make a billion dollars a year in revenue.
• Avoid browser plug-ins that send data back to the Internet.
• Go directly to trusted registrars and whois companies.

PS: I am now up to 80 feeds in my RSS reader 😛