Why domain privacy matters

What a WHOIS or RDAP lookup shows

Every domain has an owner record. Anyone can search for it with a public lookup, no account needed. The older kind is called WHOIS, the newer one RDAP, and they show much the same thing.

Depending on the ending and where the owner lives, a lookup can show the owner's name, postal address, phone number and email, along with the dates the domain was registered and renews. That is how a stranger can find a business owner's home address from a website they visit.

Who looks, and why

Most visitors never look. Lookups are mostly run in bulk, by software that reads thousands of new records a day. The ones who look are often not friendly:

• Sales lists that copy new owners' details and sell them on.
• Scammers who send fake renewal notices or invoices for the domain.
• Spammers who collect email addresses and phone numbers.

A new domain can start getting calls, letters and emails within days. Some are harmless sales pitches. Others look official on purpose, hoping you will pay a bill you do not owe.

A common one is a letter that looks like a renewal notice but is really an offer to move your domain to a different company at a higher cost. Hiding your postal address and phone number takes you off most of these lists before they start.

What privacy changes

With the Privacy add-on, a lookup shows a privacy service instead of you. Mail meant for the owner still reaches you, through a private address. Your details stay on file with us, where the law needs them, and out of public view.

Your domain is still registered in your name. Privacy changes what the public sees, not who owns it. You can still renew, transfer and manage it as normal, and you remain the legal owner in every way that counts.

What privacy does not hide

Privacy covers the owner record, nothing else. It does not hide:

• anything you publish on your site, like a contact page or an address in the footer,
• the domain's dates and status lines,
• where the domain points, which anyone can check.

Owner details can also still be shared when the law requires it, for example with a court order. Privacy keeps your details away from casual lookups and bulk collection; it is not a way to stay anonymous from the authorities.

If you live in the EU or UK

Data protection law means many lookups already hide a private person's name, address and phone number when the owner is in the EU or UK. That redaction is not the same everywhere. It depends on the ending, an organization name and country can still show, and if you move abroad or register as a business, the picture can change. Privacy gives you the same result whatever the ending and wherever you live.

Redaction also tends to leave a contact route open, such as a web form that passes messages on, and some lookups still show the region you live in. If you want a consistent, private record without checking what each ending shows, turning privacy on is the simple answer.

Do you need it?

If the contact details on your domain are your home address and a personal phone number, turn privacy on. If you use a business address and a business line you are happy to share, you may not need it. Some endings do not support privacy; checkout tells you before you pay.

A quick test: run a lookup on your own domain and read what comes back as if you were a stranger. If anything there is something you would not put on a flyer, privacy is worth having.

Either way, keep your owner email working, since that is where important messages about the domain go. Our frequently asked questions cover the rest, and you can add privacy when you buy a name on the domains page.