WHOIS Domain Lookup

What is WHOIS?

WHOIS is a public protocol used to query databases that store information about registered domain names and IP addresses. When you register a domain, the registrar records your contact information and technical details in a WHOIS database. Anyone can look up this information using a WHOIS lookup tool.

WHOIS data is essential for network administrators, cybersecurity professionals, and anyone who needs to verify domain ownership or investigate suspicious websites.

Information Available in WHOIS Records

• Domain name — the registered domain and its current status
• Registrar — the company through which the domain was registered
• Creation date — when the domain was first registered
• Expiry date — when the domain registration expires
• Updated date — when the WHOIS record was last modified
• Nameservers — the DNS servers responsible for the domain
• Registrant info — name, organization, email, and phone (if not privacy-protected)
• Admin and tech contacts — people responsible for domain management

WHOIS Privacy and GDPR

Since the introduction of GDPR in 2018, most European registrars redact personal information from WHOIS records by default. Even outside Europe, many registrars offer WHOIS privacy protection (also called "WHOIS proxy") that replaces the registrant's personal details with generic proxy contact information.

This means that for many domains you will see the registrar and technical details (creation date, expiry, nameservers) but the registrant's name, email, and address will be hidden. If you need to contact the domain owner, most privacy services provide a forwarding email address.