Private registration usually costs extra, but not with Google domains. That is a compelling reason to me. I also like the clean interface, some of the other vendors have horrible interfaces.
$15-17 for .com/net/org, but as well as whois protection you also get a 1 year SSL cert. Unlike StartSSL, this includes fee-free revocation. Probably not worth much given that 'Lets Encrypt' is just around the corner, but it's still a respectable gesture. They also have a really good management UI, responsive customer support, free (roundcube) webmail, and DNSSEC management (Namecheap lacks this). Also, they're French, if you're feeling a bit US-wary lately.
It's free on Dreamhost. I don't use them for hosting anymore, but still keep a few domains there. 10 bucks a year for .coms.
The interface is ... almost ok. It's cluttered because it's used for more than just domain registration (think it's cPanel, actually) but the registration part is ok.
With standard registration, the site is registered to you with ICANN. With private registration, it is registered to your registrar and you are provided access. Whois will show their info.
Note that this means you are technically not the owner of the domain, and you may be limited in your ability to transfer it, sell it, or do other things with it. Permissions are limited to what the registrar allows instead of what ICANN allows, although in most cases they give you nearly full control. You'll just have to read their terms if you want to know what you can do with it.
> Note that this means you are technically not the owner of the domain, and you may be limited in your ability to transfer it, sell it, or do other things with it.
This is a myth. ICANN has published requirements on how private registrations must operate; ownership of the domain always goes to the paying owner, not the registrar.
That's interesting. Do you know where the requirements are published? I've read language recently from at least one registrar specifically stating that private registration prevents transfers to other registrars. Maybe this was before these new requirements were published.
In my recent experience, private registration prevents transfers because you are unable to receive the email message that contains the code you need to complete the transfer. I am still able to transfer my domains, but I need to turn off private registration first, so the email is sent to my real email address. This seems like a silly problem, and one that the registrars cold solve if they wanted to, but obviously they don't.
I have transferred multiple domains with the privacy service turned on. No problem whatsoever. Every registrar worth doing business with (i.e. not GoDaddy) will forward all important mail to your real email address. Emails can take a few minutes or hours to get forwarded and/or end up in the spam folder, but that's about it.
If your registrar's privacy service is so bad that emails don't get through, transfers should be the least of your worries. Because of the new ICANN verification rules, you're at risk of losing your domain if emails don't get through to you.
I believe some of the registrars provide a rolling email address on your whois info, which forwards the mails to your inbox. But the address is changing at intervals, therefore if anybody scraped the address it won't be of use.
Registration without revealing your private information in the whois database. Providers usually put their own details there and forward emails to the end user.
Depending on the registry, it's unavailable or at least against the rules for some tlds.
> Depending on the registry, it's unavailable or at least against the rules for some tlds.
And yet other TLD registries are sensible enough to make privacy the default for private individuals. .EU isn't bad in this regard, and others like .SE even go so far as to hide your name (most only hide your postal, email, telephone)
Frankly I don't know why anyone who can avoid it would want to touch Verisign TLDs with a barge pole... they have the continued gall to keep putting their prices up despite more competition than ever, and fail to raise the bar on basics like whois protection. Even .UK domains can be had for $5/year with registry level whois protection for heavens sake.
If you don't have private registration a whois query on the domain shows the public your name and address. If you do it shows some nominee company instead.
It's an add-on service that domain registrars offer which hides your personal information from the public.
When you register a domain, it's a requirements that you list contact information publicly. Companies usually don't mind doing this but many people don't want to list their home address and phone number for the world to see. Private registration lists a proxy company's information as the contact for the domain and they forward the information to you.
I don't agree. I have a one-man online business, which means I can operate from home to save a lot of money, making it possible to charge less to my customers while still making a profit. I really would rather not have people who are angry at the business, for whatever reason, have easy access to my home address.
There's no requirement that you use your home address for registrars (or the IRS, for that matter). It's also not terribly expensive to get a PO Box/virtual office address, and if you're concerned about privacy then it sounds like it'd be worth it to you.
(d) A vendor conducting business through the Internet or any other electronic means of communication shall do all of the following when the transaction involves a buyer located in this state:
(1) Before accepting any payment or processing any debit or credit charge or funds transfer, the vendor shall disclose to the buyer in writing or by electronic means of communication, such as e-mail or an on-screen notice, the vendor's return and refund policy, the legal name under which the business is conducted and, except as provided in paragraph (3), the complete street address from which the business is actually conducted.
(2) If the disclosure of the vendor's legal name and address information required by this subdivision is made by on-screen notice, all of the following shall apply:
(A) The disclosure of the legal name and address information shall appear on any of the following:
(i) the first screen displayed when the vendor's electronic site is accessed,
(ii) on the screen on which goods or services are first offered,
(iii) on the screen on which a buyer may place the order for goods or services,
(iv) on the screen on which the buyer may enter payment information, such as a credit card account number, or
(v) for nonbrowser-based technologies, in a manner that gives the user a reasonable opportunity to review that information. The communication of that disclosure shall not be structured to be smaller or less legible than the text of the offer of the goods or services.
(B) The disclosure of the legal name and address information shall be accompanied by an adjacent statement describing how the buyer may receive the information at the buyer's e-mail address. The vendor shall provide the disclosure information to the buyer at the buyer's e-mail address within five days of receiving the buyer's request.
(C) Until the vendor complies with subdivision (a) in connection with all buyers of the vendor's goods or services, the vendor shall make available to a buyer and any person or entity who may enforce this section pursuant to Section 17535 on-screen access to the information required to be disclosed under this subdivision.
(g) Any violation of the provisions of this section is a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months, by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that imprisonment and fine.
https://www.gandi.net/domain/whois/