Domain name registrations are considered similar to registering a company because you are required to provide valid and accurate contact information about the domain's owner. You can choose to make information about the owner public or private; however, you must provide accurate, publicly visible contact information. The publicly visible WHOIS directory lists all domain registrations and contact information.
CoR (Change of Registrant) Locks are applied by ICANN to increase the security of a domain and prevent hijacking or other potential hazards. If you are the Registrant or Primary Account Holder, updates made to your contact information that involve changes to the Registrant's name, email address, or organization name will result in a 60-day COR Lock on all domain names associated with your account.
WHOIS is a widely used directory that houses all domain names and their information, including domain registration and expiration dates, domain owners (registrants), and name servers. The WHOIS records may also publicly show the registrant's technical and administrative contact details unless you make it private by using Domain Privacy + Protection.
According to ICANN regulations, valid and accurate contact information must be submitted whenever a domain is registered. This is to make sure you are your domain owner and the only one with full control over your domain. You must keep your WHOIS contact information up-to-date to receive important notices about your domain, such as expiration reminders. It also determines who legally and contractually has control over the domain.
It is important to note that you have to verify your WHOIS information via email after the domain purchase and when changes are made to the registrant's contact information. If no validation is done within 15 days, the domain name will be suspended. In cases of domain transfer, if no validation is done, the transfer will be interrupted.
While European customers' contact information will be masked publicly by default because of GDPR, this means that you will not know right away when someone is looking to contact the domain in question. Keeping Domain Privacy on your domain will allow any inquiries to be forwarded to you.
Domain Privacy adds a layer of protection on top for those who are protected through GDPR law. Further details regarding this service can be found in our Domain Registration Agreement.
Domain Privacy + Protection is a comprehensive service that helps protect your identity, domain name, and website against security threats, such as identity theft, malware, blacklisting, and unauthorized access. It includes the following features:
You can purchase the Domain Privacy + Protection service within your Customer Portal's Marketplace as a standalone product or include it in your hosting plan or domain purchase as an addon.
When you buy a new hosting plan or register or transfer a domain name, the Domain Privacy + Protection add-on will appear on your Checkout page under Shopping Cart as an included product. You can choose to keep or remove this service before completing your purchase.
In your Customer Portal, you have the option to turn the Domain Privacy + Protection service on or off, as well as control its "Protection" settings, such as receiving SMS alerts and conducting malware scans. Please note that if you disable the "Protection" feature within the Domain Security section, your domain contact information will still be kept private. However, the additional security features, such as SMS alerts, blacklist monitoring and security scans, will be disabled.
Can I have Domain Privacy + Protection for all my domains?
Domain Privacy + Protection is available for most top-level domains (gTLDs). However, some country-code extensions (ccTLDs) or regulated extensions are not supported.
Why am I unable to add the Domain Privacy + Protection to my domain?
It is important to note that these domains are still protected by our Domain Privacy, so your WHOIS information is still kept private from the public eye. The new protection features will be forthcoming.
Can I get privacy protection for my .us domain?
Due to a policy from the .us Registry, we cannot offer privacy protection for .us domains. Since August 1, 2008, the .us Registry has required the removal of privacy for all .us domain registrations.
I disabled SMS Alerts and/or SiteLock Lite within my Customer Portal's Domain Security section. Is my domain contact information now displayed to the public?
No. Definitely not! Your domain contact info is still kept private and not visible to the public, provided that the Privacy + Protection toggle is set to "On". However, the added security features for your domain, such as SMS alerts, blacklist monitoring, and security scans, are turned off if you disable these functions.
What happens if I update my domain contact (WHOIS) information?
A Change of Registrar (COR) lock, enforced by ICANN, will be applied to your domain if the email address, name, or organization name is changed. This will prevent the domain from being hijacked and other potential hazards, such as being transferred away to another registrar without authorization. Please note that HostGator can't bypass or expedite this lock, nor can it be disabled in the Customer Portal.
