The Security and Stability Advisory Committee of ICANN is examining the causes of the growing suspicion that insider information is being used to snatch potentially valuable domain names. No one yet knows whether Domain Name "front-running" really takes place, but many domain registrants report suspicious registrar behaviour.

Some believe that certain registrars monitor the searches that people perform on Domain Names using viruses or third-party sites. If the potential buyer doesn’t choose to buy a domain they searched for straight away, the registrar is thought to quickly register the domain themselves, knowing that at least one person is interested in it. Over the last few years, many complaints have been registered with ICANN about the suspected practice, although as yet there is no firm evidence of whether registrars really do take part in this behaviour.

The committee likened the practice to a stock broker buying or selling shares ahead of clients because they anticipate a price change. ICANN is not claiming that the practice is definitely occurring, but the committee wishes to allay domain buyers’ fears that they are being manipulated by registrars. Other possible explanations for people’s experiences could be coincidence or domain tasting, whereby some registrants register hundreds or even thousands of domains in one go. It is possible that the domain someone was interested in got caught in a domain taster’s net.