Questions in this Section:

FAQ: Private Domain Registration: Domain Privacy

ICANN requires all domain registrars to enter a domain registration's relevant contact information into a publicly accessible Whois database. These details include the domain registrant's provided name, telephone number, address, and email address.

However, most generic TLDs (.COM, .BIKE, and other extensions not representing a country) are eligible for our Domain Privacy service, which hides their associated contact details from the Whois. For an annual fee of $7.90 per domain, Domain Privacy replaces a domain name's contact details in the Whois with those of UD's proxy service. 

Activating Privacy for a Domain You Already Own

You can activate Privacy for any eligible domain from your account. The price for activating starts at $7.90, and decreases depending on the amount of time left in your domain's registration term. The less time remaining, the less you pay. 

Here's how to enable Domain Privacy for a domain in your account:

  1. Log in to your United Domains account.
  2. Find the domain name whose contact info you wish to hide, and click Activate Privacy. (Domain names that do not have this option are ineligible for Domain Privacy.)
  3. Complete the checkout prompts to finish your order. 

Once Domain Privacy is activated, you can toggle this feature on and off as often as you'd like for the remainder of the domain's current registration term, free of charge.

Activating Privacy for a New Domain Order

When you order a domain name, you can ensure it's registered privately from the start by adding Domain Privacy to your order. Here's what to do: 

UDHelp_privacy_shoppingcart.png

  1. Find a domain, add it to your shopping cart, and enter checkout.
  2. Check the Domain Privacy box next to the domain in your shopping cart (this box will not appear unless the domain is eligible for Privacy).
  3. Finish your order normally.

Privacy costs $7.90 per year.

Third-Party Whois Lookup Services

While Domain Privacy activation will update your domain name's official Whois records almost instantly, please be aware that we do not control when third-party Whois lookup services will reflect updates made for any domain. In our experience, third-party service results typically update within 48 hours.

About ccTLDs and Domain Privacy

ccTLDs are not generally eligible for our Domain Privacy service. However, if you operate a .UK domain as an individual and for non-commercial purposes, you may be able to "opt out" of having your address shown in the Whois. You can find more information from Nominet about about opting out here, and access your Nominet Online account here.

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