Which is the best choice for your domain name WHOIS record?
ID Protection (Privacy Protection) or a Redacted Domain WHOIS?
Protect your Privacy with Domain ID Privacy Protection
Add it during your Domain Name Registration Process or Add After you have ordered your domain name, ID Protection Adding to Your Domain Name
All domain names ‘domain name record’ is a public record. All it requires is to use any “Whois” service to look up a domain name record on a domain name you own. This can be a free marketing source for many Marketing Services. In fact, there are services that harvest your personal information off of the Public Whois Record and sell to marketing Firms.
Here is an example of a domain name record with and without ID Protection:
Without ID Protection
- Registrant Contact (legal owner of Domain Name): John P Doejohnp@doe.com
- 123 My Street Name
- My City
- State
- Zip Code/Postal Code
- Country
- Phone Number
Redacted for Privacy
- Redacted for Privacy
- Redacted for Privacy
- TX
- Redacted for Privacy
- US
- Redacted for Privacy
With ID Protection
- Registrant Contact (legal owner of Domain Name): PrivacyProtect.org
- Domain Admin contact@privacyprotect.org
- 10 Corporate Drive Burlington
- Burlington
- MA
- 01803
- US
- +1.8022274003
Without ID Protection all of your contact information is public and exposes your name, address, email and phone number to marketing firms, scammers, spammers, and other types of fraudsters.
Personal use of ID Privacy Protection – We recommend using ID Protection on all personal domain names that will allow them (see a list of domains below that do not allow ID Protection).
Business use of ID Protection – We recommend using ID Protection even on your business domain names to protect your information from being easily harvested. However if you plan on using ID Protection on your business domain name make sure to have a very good about us or contact us page, that has more than just a contact email address and form. We suggest you supply a phone number and regular mailing address and other means of contacting to build that trust factor with your internet customers.
What are the regulations for each TLD? To review the REGISTRY POLICIES for the TLD you wish to REGISTER a Domain Name for, PLEASE CLICK HERE. (This will take you to our registrar PDR Ltd.)
Feature | ID Protection (Privacy Protection) | WHOIS Record Showing Redacted |
Personal Information Concealment | Full concealment of personal information and from accredited third parties. | Partial concealment: some information may still be visible |
Spam and Unwanted Contact Reduction | Significantly reduces spam and unwanted contact | Reduces spam but not as effectively as full protection |
Protection Against Identity Theft | High level of protection against identity theft | Moderate protection |
Legal and Regulatory Compliance | Complies with GDPR and other privacy regulations | Complies with GDPR but may not offer full privacy |
Ease of Contact for Legitimate Queries | Provides a proxy email for legitimate contact without revealing personal email | May not provide a proxy email, making legitimate contact harder |
Cost | Annual Fee added to Domain Name renewal of domain name | Current Register included with domain registration |
Visibility in WHOIS Database | Information is completely hidden from public WHOIS database | Information is redacted but still shows as "redacted" |
Peace of Mind | Greater peace of mind knowing personal details are fully protected | Some peace of mind, but less comprehensive protection |
This chart highlights the key differences and benefits of each option, helping you make an informed decision based on your privacy needs and preferences.
ID Privacy Protection is not available on all domain names. The following domain names you can not use privacy protection: .US, .CA (available for individuals, not businesses), .AM, .ASIA, .DE, .EU, .FM, .IN, .IT, .JOBS, .MS, .NU, .SE, .TC, .TK, .TW, .TEL, .UK.COM, .US.COM
