I thought it would be good to set forth some Q & A about Privacy Domain Protection to help those new to domain registration get the facts straight and avoid making serious mistakes with a new website. This uses Domains by Proxy as an example, but is not meant to endorse or disparage any particular Privacy Domain Registration service.

What is Private Domain Protection or Domain Privacy?

Domain privacy or Private Domain Protection is a service offered by many domain name registrars. While registering a domain name a user can opt to buy “privacy” from the registrar. The domain registrar will replace the user’s WHOIS info with the info of a “forwarding service”  such as “Domains by Proxy, Inc.” or eNom’s “Whois Privacy Protection Service”.

Does it cost extra?

Yes. There is usually a recurring fee for this service.

How is my information Private after purchasing this service?

When someone does a “whois” search for your domain name, instead of your actual contact information, they are presented with “proxy” information instead. This contact information tells the searcher that you have hidden your real contact info and reveals nothing about you.

Can someone find out my real contact information anyway?

Yes and no! The domain privacy service acts as a barrier to your real information. For normal searchers, there is no way to find out your contact information. However, if they have a legitimate claim under certain conditions which usually require court orders or law enforcement documentation, the Privacy service can release your contact info if compelled to do so. Otherwise, they will not.

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Can’t I just change my Whois contact info to false information and save a few bucks?

No. This is a very bad idea. ICANN, the authoritative body that governs domain names, forbids domain registrants from providing false information. If one is caught doing so, ICANN has the right to seize the domain. Additionally, in the USA, there is currently efforts to make such activity criminal as a matter of fraud. Furthermore, if one were to get involved in civil court cases, such deception can be counted against one’s credibility.

Are Domain Privacy services such as Domain’s by Proxy a good idea for a small business?

Not really. I would advise against it for a few reasons. First of all, if you are a properly registered and legal business you should not want to hide your contact information. I don’t know of any business who does not want people to contact them. Secondly, it looks like you are hiding something when someone takes a few steps to ‘check you out’ before they do business with you. Perception is everything in business and looking a bit sneaky (even if that was not your intention) can negatively impact your business.

Are Domain Privacy services such as Domain’s by Proxy a good idea for a individuals (not a business)?

Yes. For one simple reason… an individual who is not a business has legitimate reason not to have their home address, phone number and email published on the Internet. For an individual who has a blog and writes interesting stuff that attracts a following, the last thing you want is your “number one fan” showing up on your doorstep or calling you at home. Moreover, marketers harvest this information in order to inundate you with email spam and junk mail. I believe this is the only case where privacy protection is advisable.

If I am a small business and an individual how do I balance my privacy with not appearing to be too private?

For micro businesses and home-based businesses it is wise to get a few things in order to separate your business from your personal life.

• Get a separate business address. This could be a PO box at the post office, or a mailbox from a private mail service vendor like the UPS store.
• Get a separate phone number for your business. This can be done with VOIP services like Vonage and work on the same phones in your home.
• Create a special email address that is for your whois contact info only. You must forward this to a real address so its a real working email. But never use your main email for your whois info.

In doing these things, you can legitimately use this business info instead of your personal info in the domain contacts (whois) and at the same time protect your personal contact info from being compromised.

I set up Privacy Protection with Domains by Proxy when I first registered with Godaddy, but now I decided I don’t want it anymore, how do I cancel it?

This can get very tricky… way more difficult than it should be. I use Domains by Proxy a service by Godaddy as an example, since this is very popular and I am most familiar with it personally. This is just my opinion, but Godaddy is only good for one thing… registering domain names. Everything else they provide is mostly fluff and trash designed to sell to the unsuspecting and inexperienced. It works for them, I guess; but not for people who know what they are doing with websites and domains.  I digress.

Here are some simple facts that make the process of canceling your privacy service harder than it needs to be:

• You cannot simply check or uncheck a box the next time you renew your domain to “unchoose” the service.
• You cannot change anything about your Domains by Proxy account via the Godaddy account panel. You can only buy the service the first time this way, everything else is handled on a separate site.
• Your Godaddy account ID or number is not the same as your Domains by Proxy account number. Tracking down the correct account # for this privacy service is not very easy at all, although it can be done through much travail.
• To cancel the service, you must login to your Domains by Proxy account, with the correct account ID and password. Password? What password? — exactly. Good luck with that.
• Retrieving a lost password for this account is extremely difficult. Because it is all about privacy they make it extremely difficult to reset or retrieve the password.

I could go on, but you get the idea. Once you’re in, its hard to get out. It can be done though, so don’t worry.

Is Domains by Proxy or any other Domain privacy service worth it?

My view is that for very particular circumstances, namely; if you are a private individual and not a business, it may be wise to protect your personal info from the kooks on the Internet. But that’s about the only reason it is worthwhile. For businesses it is definitely a bad move for reasons explained above.