Are Bots Registering Twitter Handles Based on Fresh Domain Registrations?

It would be and easy process to automate.

When you finally find that perfect and available domain name, you’re not yet done securing your online identity. And someone might be lurking to “front run” your Twitter username.

That’s what Ross Duggan thinks happened to him. He finally found the perfect unregistered domain name for his fresh project. He checked on Twitter and the same handle was still available. So he registered the domain name.

When he returned a couple days later to register the Twitter username he found that it was taken. The user hadn’t done anything with the Twitter account other than register it.

It would be really easy for someone to front run your username. Getting fresh registration information typically takes a day if the frontrunner is downloading the zone file. But if they’re monitoring fresh entries to the DNS they could get the info faster.

I recommend getting your Twitter handle at the same time you register your domain.

Hat tip: Jorge Monasterio.