ICA Membership: The Closest Thing to a Broker License

Unlike real estate, the domain name industry has no official licensing body, no exam to pass, no government register of accredited brokers. Anyone can call themselves a domain broker. The closest thing the industry has to a professional license is membership with the Internet Commerce Association, better known as the ICA.

The ICA is a non-profit trade association, founded in 2006, representing domain name investors, brokers, website developers and related businesses. Members agree to a code of conduct and accept that the ICA Board can investigate credible violations of it.

What the Code of Conduct Covers

• Intellectual property: members must not register domains intending to infringe a trademark, and must promptly address any infringing use brought to their attention.
• Fraud compliance: members must comply with all applicable laws around online fraud and abuse.
• Accurate WHOIS: members must keep truthful registrant information with their registrar, including the underlying details behind any privacy protection service.
• Lawful use only: domain names can't be used for unlawful purposes.
• Respect for tragedy: members must not register domains to profit from a recent tragedy, and must be respectful to affected communities.

The ICA Board investigates credible reports of violations and can issue a warning, suspend, or expel a member who breaches these standards. A member charged with a domain-related criminal offence faces immediate suspension, and potential expulsion if convicted.

Why It's Worth Caring About

When you're trusting someone to track down a domain owner, negotiate on your behalf, or sell an asset worth real money, it's worth knowing they've agreed to a standard of conduct beyond just "trust me." ICA membership is a visible, checkable commitment to that standard. It isn't a guarantee of outcome, but it is a signal of intent.

To be clear: not being an ICA member doesn't make a broker dodgy. Plenty of capable, honest brokers simply haven't joined. But choosing to become, and remain, a paying member does mean something. It's an explicit, ongoing commitment to accountability and ethical conduct, backed by real investment in the industry's reputation, not just a badge on a website.

DNC is a paying ICA member. We're not just displaying the logo, we're invested in the standards it represents, and happy to point you to the code of conduct we've agreed to follow.

ICA membership won't guarantee a good broker, but it shows they've chosen to be held to a standard, and they're paying for the privilege of being watched.