Overview

When you register a domain name, ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) legally requires you to provide valid contact details — including your name, email, physical address, and phone number — which are published in the public WHOIS directory.

The Risks of Public WHOIS Data

• Spam and telemarketing: Automated scrapers harvest public directories to send unsolicited marketing emails and sales calls.
• Identity theft and scams: Malicious actors can target domain owners with fraudulent transfer notices or invoice scams.
• Privacy exposure: Your personal home address and phone number become searchable by anyone on the internet.

How Domain Privacy Works

Domain privacy protection (often called WHOIS Privacy or Proxy Service) replaces your personal contact details with the registrar's generic proxy information in the public directory. While ICANN still has access to your real data for legal compliance, public scrapers see only anonymized placeholder details. Most modern registrars now include this service for free.