If this is your first time purchasing a domain, you may have come across the offer to add contact data privacy to your domain, also known as “Domain privacy”, “Protect ID”, “ID Protection”, or in some Whois protect” according to the registrar.
There is a universal query protocol called Whois that allows us to know, among other things, who owns a domain, some contact information such as the owner’s phone number, and which DNS servers it is delegated to.
Although the majority of domain owners do not mind that their data is public, since generally there is nothing to hide, there are many others who prefer that it not be.
What is the ID Protection service, ID Protect or Domain privacy
The ID Protection service allows you to hide your public data in whois queries that anyone makes to your domain, showing the registrar’s data or a white label generic name and data. There are many websites to perform a whois search on a domain, and at the same time, some domain registration providers will allow you to make a query.
ICANN, which is the Internet domain regulator, advises that all domains publicly display the real data of the domain owner for a matter of transparency and, if there is a problem, they can contact the owner to resolve it. A domain also allows you to configure administrative and technical contacts in case you want to use different contact information for each purpose. Despite these recommendations, many domain owners decide to hide their contact information.
The good news is that if you are one of those who want to protect your data, you can enable and disable ID protect or Domain privacy at any time.
Wouldn’t whois or Protect ID data protection lead to scam sites?
If the reason why you are deciding to hide your domain registration data is because it is going to carry out an illegal, fraudulent or offensive activity, you should know that no web hosting provider likes to host problematic sites.
Faced with the first problem, whoever is affected by a website will try to contact its owner through public data obtained by consulting whois; and if not because these are protected, you will probably escalate a complaint to the web hosting provider where the DNS are pointed.
The most professional web hosting providers have strict privacy policies to protect users, but in the event of a legal search, data consultation by local authorities, or confirmation of illegal activity, they will act as appropriate by canceling the service and/or providing the contact information of the real owner.
How to activate whois data privacy for your domain
Whois or protect ID data protection can be activated both at the time of purchase and later, if you decide later. You may also regret it over time, and you can deactivate it during the period in which you registered it or before its renewal.
TIP! You should know that this service has a small additional value which is added to the cost of your domain, and it has no “proportions” or “refund” if you register it with this option active, decide to activate it later, or remove it later. Think carefully before acting to avoid losing money!
How to activate ID Protection if you are buying a new domain
When you have decided to purchase your new domain, you will start by checking if the name is available. If available, add it to shopping cart.
On the next screen, activate the “ID Protection” option.
In this step you can also add a hosting plan so you can finish the wizard and start building your new website. Did you know that at WNPower we have the most complete and secure hosting of all?
How to activate ID protect or Domain Privacy on an existing domain
- When you already have a registered domain, go to your customer area, and in the Domains box, access the one you want to manage.
- Within the options menu on the left, go to “Add-ons”.
- And press the “Buy now” button to make the payment.
How to deactivate or cancel data protection or ID Protect
- Within the domain options, go to “Plugins”.
- And now press the “Deactivate” button.
- Remember that if you do this, there will be no turning back and you will not get your money back for the time you have not used it (you will be discarding it completely). If you want to activate it again, you will have to pay for the service again.
