BEIJING, Jan. 9 -- China's country code domain ".cn" is now the world's most commonly used.

It had 16.36 million users by the end of last year, topping Germany's ".de," according to data released on Friday by the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), which manages the domain.

The .cn domain is also world leading in domain resolution service, security and the ratio of benign uses, said CNNIC head Li Xiaodong.

As China began to require real-name registration in 2009, the .cn domain is able to protect users' interests and reduce online theft, phishing and fraud, Li said.

The domain is not only widely used by Chinese institutions and companies but also by overseas institutions and multinationals, according to the CNNIC.

It is used by all central and provincial governments in China and most telecom companies and commercial banks. Multinationals including Apple Inc., Microsoft, Samsung and Amazon own .cn domain names.