01
WHOIS privacy service included with every domain
A WHOIS privacy service replaces your name, address, phone and email in the public domain record with privacy contact details. At NameBest it is included in the price of every domain whose registry allows it, it is on from the moment of registration, and there is nothing to buy or switch on.
02
What WHOIS privacy hides
Every registered domain has a public record that shows who holds it. Without privacy, anyone can look up the registrant and read their personal details. With privacy on, the record shows privacy contact details instead.
| Field | Without privacy | With NameBest privacy |
|---|---|---|
| Registrant name | Your full name | Replaced with a privacy contact |
| Address | Your street, city and country | Hidden, only the state or country may show |
| Phone | Your phone number | Hidden |
| Your real address | A forwarding address that reaches you | |
| Sponsoring registrar | Shown | Shown |
| Dates and nameservers | Shown | Shown |
03
Why a WHOIS privacy service matters
Public WHOIS records are scraped all the time. A visible email or phone number invites spam, sales calls, fake renewal invoices and phishing that uses your real name. A home address in a public record is a safety risk for anyone who runs a business from home. Privacy keeps these details out of reach and leaves the parts of the record that others legitimately need, such as the registrar and the expiry date.
- Less spam and fewer cold sales calls
- No fake renewal notices sent to your address
- Your home address stays private
- Competitors cannot see which domains you hold under your name
04
Included in the price, not sold as an add on
Many registrars charge a yearly fee for privacy or add it as a checkbox at checkout. At NameBest it is part of the domain price on every eligible extension, for the whole life of the domain. Renewals include it too, so the price you see in the domain prices table is the full price.
05
How WHOIS privacy works in your dashboard
Open a domain in your dashboard and go to the Privacy tab. You see whether privacy is on and what the public record shows. Privacy is on for every new registration and every transfer in where the registry allows it.
- Step 1. Register or transfer a domain. Privacy turns on by itself.
- Step 2. Check the Privacy tab to see the public record.
- Step 3. Read messages sent to the privacy email in your own inbox.
- Step 4. Switch privacy off only if you need your details public, for example for some business verification.
06
Where registries do not allow privacy
A few registries do not permit privacy, or limit it. The best known is .us, whose rules require the registrant details to be public. Some country extensions show the organization name even with privacy on. We show this in the search result and in the cart, before you pay, so you can choose another extension if privacy matters to you. See the rules for each ending on the list of available domain extensions.
07
Who can still see your details
Privacy hides your details from the public, not from the system that keeps domains working. The registry and the sponsoring registrar hold the real registrant data, as ICANN rules require. Law enforcement and people with a legitimate legal claim, such as a trademark owner in a dispute, can request it through a formal process. You remain the legal owner of the domain at all times. Read who owns a domain for how ownership is recorded.
08
How people can still reach you
The privacy email in the record forwards messages to your registrant email, so buyers, partners and abuse reports still reach you. You decide whether to reply. Legal notices about the domain also reach you through the same route.
09
WHOIS privacy questions
Is the WHOIS privacy service really included?
Yes. Privacy is part of the price of every domain whose registry allows it, on registration and on every renewal. There is no separate line in the cart.
Does privacy affect who owns the domain?
No. You stay the registrant and the legal owner. Privacy only changes what the public record shows.
Why does .us not allow privacy?
The .us registry requires registrant details to be public as part of its rules for a US connection. The search result and the cart tell you this before you buy.
Will people still be able to contact me?
Yes. The record shows a privacy email that forwards messages to your registrant email. Your real address stays hidden.
Does privacy carry over when I transfer a domain in?
Yes. After the transfer completes, privacy is on for your domain wherever the registry allows it. See domain transfer for the steps.
Can I turn WHOIS privacy off?
Yes. Open the domain in your dashboard, go to the Privacy tab and switch it off. Your details then show in the public record until you switch it on again.
10
Register a domain with privacy included
Search a name and see which extensions include privacy.