The Complainant is CNC Technologies, LLC, United States of America (“United States”), represented by Law Offices of Jack M. Snyder, LLC, United States.
The Respondent is Onye Nku, Nigeria. 2. The Domain Name and Registrar
The disputed domain name The Complaint was filed with the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (the “Center”) on August 3, 2020. On August 4, 2020, the Center transmitted by email to the Registrar a request for registrar verification in connection with the Domain Name. On August 5, 2020, the Registrar transmitted by email to the Center its verification response confirming that the Respondent is listed as the registrant and providing the contact details. The Center verified that the Complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy” or “UDRP”), the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Rules”), and the WIPO Supplemental Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Supplemental Rules”). In accordance with the Rules, paragraphs 2 and 4, the Center formally notified the Respondent of the Complaint, and the proceedings commenced on August 6, 2020. In accordance with the Rules, paragraph 5, the due date for Response was August 26, 2020. The Respondent did not submit any response. Accordingly, the Center notified the Respondent’s default on August 27, 2020. The Center appointed Ian Lowe as the sole panelist in this matter on September 3, 2020. The Panel finds that it was properly constituted. The Panel has submitted the Statement of Acceptance and Declaration of Impartiality and Independence, as required by the Center to ensure compliance with the Rules, paragraph 7. 4. Factual Background The Complainant was founded in around December 2015 and is based in California, United States. It is an aviation technology and wireless communications company serving the law enforcement, government and military markets. The Complainant provides custom aerial surveillance, data transmission, and counterterrorism solutions to numerous United States and international clients. It registered the domain name The Domain Name was registered on November 12, 2019. The Domain Name does not resolve to an active website and, so far as the Complainant is aware, never has done. The Respondent has, however, configured an email server on the Domain Name, enabling the Respondent to use email addresses with the suffix “@cnctecnoloqies.com”. The Respondent has sent emails to clients of the Complainant purporting to be from officers or employees of the Complainant, using email addresses differing therefore by just one letter from genuine email addresses of those personnel. The emails have fraudulently sought to require the Complainant’s customers to direct payments due to the Complainant to a bank account controlled by the Respondent. Substantial such funds were successfully diverted pursuant to the Respondent’s fraudulent scheme. 5. Parties’ Contentions A. Complainant The Complainant contends that the Domain Name is confusingly similar to its CNC TECHNOLOGIES trademark (the “Mark”), that the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the Domain Name, and that the Respondent registered and is using the Domain Name in bad faith within the meaning of paragraph 4(b)(i) of the Policy. B. Respondent The Respondent did not reply to the Complainant’s contentions. 6. Discussion and Findings For this Complaint to succeed in relation to the Domain Name the Complainant must prove that: (i) the Domain Name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights; and (ii) the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the Domain Name; and (iii) the Domain Name has been registered and is being used in bad faith. A. Identical or Confusingly Similar The Complainant has adduced evidence of its widespread use of the Mark over a number of years. The Panel is satisfied that as a result of the goodwill and reputation acquired through such use the Complainant has acquired unregistered trademark rights in respect of the Mark. Ignoring the generic Top-Level Domain (“gTLD”) “.com” for this purpose, the Domain Name is identical to the Mark, save only for the substitution of the letter “q” for the letter “g”. In the view of the Panel, this minor difference does not detract from the confusing similarity between the Mark and the Domain Name. Accordingly, the Panel finds that the Domain Name is confusingly similar to a trademark in which the Complainant has rights. B. Rights or Legitimate Interests The Complainant has made out a strong prima facie case that the Respondent could have no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the Domain Name. The Respondent has not used the Domain Name in connection with a bona fide offering of goods and services, but rather to pursue a fraudulent scheme, using email addresses comprising the Domain Name. The emails were intended to confuse recipients into believing the emails were from employees of the Complainant and to deceive customers of the Complainant into paying monies due to the Complainant to a bank account controlled by the Respondent. The Respondent has chosen not to respond to the Complaint or to take any steps to counter the prima facie case established by the Complainant. In the circumstances, the Panel finds that the Respondent does not have any rights or legitimate interests in respect of the Domain Name. C. Registered and Used in Bad Faith In light of the nature of the Domain Name and the above finding, the Panel is in no doubt that the Respondent had the Complainant and its rights in the Mark in mind when it registered the Domain Name. The Panel is satisfied in light of the evidence submitted by the Complainant, that the Respondent registered the Domain Name with a view to deceiving third parties into believing that the Domain Name was being operated by or authorized by the Complainant for fraudulent purposes. Accordingly, the Panel finds that the Domain Name was registered and is being used in bad faith. 7. Decision For the foregoing reasons, in accordance with paragraphs 4(i) of the Policy and 15 of the Rules, the Panel orders that the Domain Name Ian Lowe
Sole Panelist
Date: September 7, 2020
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy