Domains

Why you should keep your domain names for at least 10 years

Written by Sam Serrien · March 30, 2026

A domain name costs barely € 18 per year. Yet businesses and organizations regularly let them expire, sometimes with disastrous consequences. In this article, I explain why you should keep your domain names for at least 10 years, and why it's the cheapest piece of brand protection you can buy.

The problem: what happens when your domain expires?

Once a domain name becomes available, anyone can register it. Over 150,000 domain names expire worldwide every day. Automated systems continuously scan for released domains with value: well-known brand names, government agencies, popular websites.

Whoever registers your old domain gains full control over:

The website at that address (including all traffic still coming in via old links, QR codes, and printed materials)
All email sent to that domain (password resets, client communications, confidential documents)
The ability to send emails that look like they come from your organization
Access to online accounts linked to email addresses on that domain (Dropbox, Google Drive, Microsoft 365)

Heads up

An expired domain name is not an innocent administrative oversight. It's an open door to identity fraud, phishing, and data breaches.

Belgian cases: closer to home than you think

107 government domains for € 8 each

In May 2024, ethical hacker Inti De Ceukelaire purchased 107 expired domain names from Belgian government organizations.^[1] Cost: € 8 each. Total: € 856 for 107 domains.

After setting up mailboxes on those domains, he received thousands of messages within one week containing sensitive information: files on early release of detainees, special assistance dossiers, insurance reports, and student therapy records.

Through the 848 email addresses he activated, he gained access to:

80 Dropbox accounts
142 Google Drive accounts
57 Microsoft/OneDrive/SharePoint accounts
Dozens of Smartschool and Doccle accounts

The affected organizations? 44 social welfare offices, 32 police zones, 12 addiction support centers, 12 student guidance centers, 4 psychiatric hospitals, and 3 legal institutions.

The cost perspective

De Ceukelaire emphasized that 10 years of domain registration costs only € 100 to € 200. A fraction of what a data breach can cost in fines, legal fees, and reputational damage.

Overpelt.be: a municipality loses its name

After the merger of Overpelt and Neerpelt into the municipality of Pelt in 2019, nobody renewed the domain overpelt.be.^[2] Neerpelt.be was renewed, but overpelt.be was not.

The result? An unknown party registered the domain. The website overpelt.be now shows a random blog. Old government documents still reference overpelt.be URLs, directing citizens to a site outside the municipality's control. The municipality tried to recover the domain through DNS Belgium, but failed.

International examples

This is not a Belgian problem. Organizations worldwide lose domain names with serious consequences.

Organization	What happened	Consequence
Sorenson Communications ^[3]	Forgot to renew the domain powering their 911 emergency service for deaf people	Service unreachable for 3 days. $3 million fine from the FCC
Foursquare ^[4]	Domain expired while the company was valued at $80 million	Entire service went offline
Google.com	Someone bought google.com for $12 during a brief lapse	Google had to buy back the domain
Marketo ^[4]	Billion-dollar company forgot to renew	Email services and website disrupted
Regions Bank	22nd largest US bank, 1,700+ branches	Online banking down for nearly a week

Why at least 10 years?

Most registrars offer the option to register domain names up to 10 years in advance. That may sound excessive, but the math is simple:

The cost: ~ € 180 for 10 years

Standard .be domain: from € 18/year
10 years ahead: about € 180
Less than 2 hours of consultancy

The risk: one forgotten renewal

Loss of your online identity
Data breaches through intercepted emails
Phishing attacks targeting your customers
Legal costs running into thousands of euros

There are three good reasons to choose the longest period:

1. You eliminate the risk of forgetting

Credit cards expire. Responsible staff change positions. Companies merge. Every annual renewal is a moment where things can go wrong. By registering for 10 years, you eliminate ten of those moments.

2. Organizational changes are unpredictable

The Overpelt case proves it: during a merger, acquisition, or restructuring, domain names fall through the cracks. Who is responsible? Which email address receives the reminders? Long-term registration protects you against these organizational blind spots.

3. It's the cheapest piece of brand protection

Compare it to other forms of brand protection. A European trademark registration at EUIPO costs at least € 850 for one class. A legal procedure to recover a domain through CEPANI costs several thousand euros minimum. 10 years of domain registration? About € 180.

Pro tip

Don't just register your primary domain for a long period. Also register common variants: with and without hyphens, common typos, and relevant extensions (.be, .com, .eu, .nl).

Best practices for domain name protection

Register your most important domain names for the maximum period (10 years)
Enable automatic renewal and keep your payment method up to date
Register defensive variants: alternative extensions, typos, with and without hyphens
Ensure multiple people have access to domain management, not just one contact person
Activate domain lock to prevent unauthorized transfers
Regularly check that all domains are still active, especially after mergers or restructurings

A domain is not a trademark

Registering a domain name does not give you trademark rights. Consider also registering your brand name as a trademark at EUIPO or the Benelux Office for Intellectual Property. This strengthens your legal position if someone tries to hijack your domain name.

Cybersquatting is increasing

The problem is not getting smaller. According to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), a record 6,282 domain name disputes were filed in 2025.^[5] Since the pandemic, cybersquatting cases have surged by 68%.

About 80% of these cases result in transfer or cancellation of the domain. But that costs time, money, and energy you could have saved by simply keeping the domain.

Sources

[1]Waarom je je domeinnamen best niet laat vervallen (VRT NWS, 22 May 2024). Ethical hacker Inti De Ceukelaire purchased 107 expired government domains and demonstrated how sensitive data was accessible via email.
[2]Overpelt verliest domeinnaam na fusie (VRT NWS, 22 May 2024). The municipality of Pelt forgot to renew overpelt.be, after which an unknown party registered the domain.
[3]How forgetting to renew a domain name cost $3M (Sophos, 2017). Sorenson Communications received a $3 million fine from the FCC after their 911 emergency service domain expired.
[4]5 All-time domain expirations in internet's history (WhoAPI). Overview of notable cases including Foursquare and Marketo.
[5]WIPO Cybersquatting Cases Hit New Record in 2025 (WIPO, 2026). Record 6,282 domain name disputes, a 68% increase since the pandemic.