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FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
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SENATE 
Senate Bill No. 665 
INTRODUCED BY SEN. JINGGOY EJERCITO ESTRADA 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Internet technology has gone a long way after its first invention in the 
1960s as part of the United States military tool for research and intelligence 
purposes. More than four decades later, it evolved from a basic chatting service 
to exchange information and scientific researches into a giant cybermall offering 
services and products of all shapes and sizes from all over the world. 
The possibilities of internet technology are almost boundless and limitless. 
Yet, with all its infinite possibilities come the limitless problems and conflicts. One 
of the most common and expensive of these problems is Cyber Squatting, an act 
of acquiring a domain name in the cyberspace before the rightful and legitimate 
owner of a trademark or a personal/business name can do so. This has led to the 
unscrupulous practice of cyber squatters selling the domain back to the 
legitimate owner but with an appalling price that runs into millions of pesos. 
Cyber Squatting usually affects businesses and their trade names causing 
confusion to their clients and even diverting them away. According to the World 
Intellectual Property Organization (WI PO), a specialized agency of the United 
Nations dedicated to developing a balanced and accessible international 
intellectual property (I P) system, cyber squatting is on the increase all over the 
globe and it often entails bad faith intent by the cyber squatter to profit from the 
domain name acquired. 
This measure is hereby proposed to ensure the integrity of domain names. 
It intends to help the legitimate owners stake a rightful claim to their domain 
names and preclude bad faith registration of the same. It is hoped that through 
this bill, personal/business names and trademarks will be protected against 
fraudulent individuals or groups that cause identity confusion and intellectual 
property infringement with their trade names. 
In view of the foregoing, approval of this hill is earnestly requested. 
OY EJERCITO ESTRADA 
Senator 


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FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
Senate Bill No. 665 
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INTRODUCED BY SEN. JINGGOY EJERCITO ESTRADA 
AN ACT 
TO PREVENT FRAUDULENT ACQUISITION OF A PHILIPPINE DOMAIN OR 
.PH DOMAIN NAME OVER THE INTERNET AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Tit/e. - This Act shall be known as the "Anti-Cyber 
Squatting Act of 2010". 
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State recognizes the vital role of 
information and communications technology (ICT) in nation building. In 
furtherance thereof, the State hereby advocates for the protection of the people 
against cyber piracy and fraud. 
SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. - For purposes of this Act, the definitions of 
the following terms are: 
(a) "Philippine Domain Name or .PH Domain" refers to any 
alphanumeric deSignation with a (.ph) suffix which is registered with or assigned 
by any Philippine country code top level domain (CCTLD) registrar as part of the 
electronic address on the internet. 
(b) "Web Site" refers to the electronic address or home page of a person 
or entity in the internet. 
(c) "Domain Name Registration" refers to service provided by any 
domain name registrar to obtain a domain name for use of web site. 
(d) "Philippine Domain Name Registrar" refers to an organization 
awarded by Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the 
highest governing body for internet addresses, to manage and distribute the .PH 
domain names to local customers. 
(e) "Internet" refers to the myriad of computer and telecommunications 
facilities, including equipment and operating software, which comprises the 
interconnected world-wide network of networks that employ the Transmission 
Control Protocol! Internet Protocol (TCP!IP), or any predecessor or successor 
protocols to such protocol, to communicate information of all kinds. 


SEC. 4. Cyber Piracy Prevention. - It shall be unlawful for any person or 
entity to acquire a domain name over the internet if there is bad faith intent to 
profit, mislead, destroy reputation, and deprive others from registering, if such 
domain name is: 
(a) similar, identical, or confusingly similar to an existing trademark 
registered with the appropriate government agency at the time of the domain 
name registration; 
(b) identical or in any way similar with the name of a person other than the 
registrant, in case of a personal name; or 
(c) acquired with no rights or intellectual property interests in it. 
SEC. 5. Liability of a Philippine Domain Name Registrar. 
- Any 
Domain Name Registrar or any of its authorized domain name distributor, shall 
be civilly liable for accepting the registration of a fraudulent domain name. 
SEC. 6. Penalties. Any person who violates any provision of this Act shall, 
upon conviction, will be penalized by imprisonment of prision correcional in its 
maximum period up to prision mayor in its minimum period, or a fine of not less 
than P2,OOO,OOO.OO nor more than P50,OOO,OOO.OOo;r both such fine and 
imprisonment at the discretion of the court. 
The remedies of an in rem action under this Act shall be limited to a court 
order for the forfeiture or cancellation of the domain name or the transfer of the 
domain name to the legitimate owner. 
SEC. 7. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, 
proclamations and administrative regulations, or parts thereof inconsistent 
herewith are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. 
SEC. 8. Separability Clause. - Any portion or prOVisions of this Act that 
may be declared unconstitutional or invalid shall not have the effect of nullifying 
other portions and proVisions hereof as long as such remaining portion or 
provision can still subsist and be given effect in their entirety. 
SEC. 9. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in at least two (2) national newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved,