WHOIS is a public database that contains registration details for domain names, including the registrant's name, address, phone number, email, and other contact information. This database is maintained by domain registries and is required by ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) for most top-level domains (TLDs) like .com, .net, and .org. The purpose of WHOIS is to provide transparency and accountability in domain ownership, allowing people to identify who owns a domain in case of disputes, abuse, or technical issues.
Anyone can look up WHOIS information for free using a variety of online tools. This includes dedicated WHOIS lookup websites (such as ywhois.com), domain registrars websites, or even command-line tools on most operating systems. Simply enter the domain name into the search field, and the public record will be displayed if it's not protected.
To safeguard your personal information from being exposed in these public WHOIS records, domain privacy protection (also known as WHOIS privacy or ID protection) is available. This service masks your real contact details by replacing them with generic or proxy information provided by a third-party privacy service. Instead of showing your name and address, the WHOIS record might display something like "Contact Privacy Inc" with a forwarding email or phone number. This helps prevent spam, identity theft, harassment, or unwanted solicitations from scammers, marketers, or cybercriminals who scrape WHOIS data. Keep in mind that domain privacy services do have an established method by which legitimate, authorized users like law enforcement agencies can contact the domain owner and/or view registrant details.
We offer free Domain Privacy Protection, sometimes called WHOIS privacy, for all eligible domains registered through us at no additional charge. This makes it an optional but highly recommended feature. To add it to your domain, simply select "ID Protection" during the domain checkout process. This will automatically replace your contact information with that of a third-party service, protecting you from spam and other risks. While we recommend always choosing this option, if you don't wish to use this service, do not select "ID Protection" during the domain checkout process. If you've already registered a domain without it, please contact us to enable ID Protection.
