You don’t renew your domain name, this could happen — Oops. If

A government watchdog let its domain name expire. Someone advocating for the other side registered it.

An advocacy group in the city of Kenner, Louisiana let its domain name expire. Now someone in opposition to the group is using the domain.

Citizens for a Better Kenner, Inc., is a non-profit watchdog of the local government. It registered the domain name CitizensforaBetterKenner.com in 2011 to promote its cause.

Then, apparently earlier this year, it let the domain name expire. Someone with a very different message registered the domain. The website now has the message:

Thank you to Mayor Zahn, the Kenner City Council, and Chief Glaser for doing an excellent job keeping our city moving in the right direction in 2019.

The overwhelming volume of Kenner residents appreciates what you do!

In a lawsuit (pdf) filed to try to recover the domain (as well as the matching .net and .org) and get damages, Citizens for a Better Kenner states that “The opinions and content as right now displayed on the website are in stark contrast to the actual opinions of the actual CFBK.”

The non-profit alleges that the fresh owner of the domain is cybersquatting and has “a bad faith intent to profit from the goodwill created over eight (8) years by CFBK.”

The group might have trouble proving this. It does not appear that the current owner has a profit motive. It simply appears to be exercising its own free speech with the “opinions and content,” which may be a plausible defense in the case.

Granted, it may not be clear to people when they visit the website.