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How To Tell Who Owns A Domain Name

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How to Find Out Who Owns a Domain Name

There is always a chance that even with all the aforementioned steps, the owner will flat out refuse to sell their domain or name a price that is way outside your budget. In this case, you can consider a different domain name.

Do not forget to try your domain name with different TLDs . If the .com version of the domain is taken, maybe the .net will be available. Check out our article about the different types of domains if you wish to learn more.

Even if that is not the case, sit down and try to brainstorm other domain names. Who knows? Maybe you will come up with one that you like even more than your original idea.

Who Is The Owner Of A Domain

When searching for a domains owner, multiple individuals contacts can surface as representatives for technical support, billing, and administration. The complete legal owner, however, is the registrant .

As long as the registration fees are paid on time, this is the person who had the full rights to the domain and full control over selling it if he or she wishes to.

Domain Name Privacy In Whois

As mentioned above, domain name registrant details are available to anyone who cares to look for it. Information is minimal but provides enough details to contact the owner or the person who registered the domain name.

However, many domain owners use a third-party service to submit the name in an effort to protect their own identity from fraud, harassment, spam emails, spam calls, and marketing lists.

In cases where the owner is not listed as the registrant, youll need to contact the registrar or registrant and they will forward the information to the actual domain owner.

Recommended Reading: What Is Buying And Selling Domains

How To Find Out Who The Domain Owner Is

Youve spent time brainstorming domain names. Youve tried different domain suggestion tools. And youve finally figured out the perfect name.

But when you go to register the domain name youre set on, you find that someone has already claimed it. What a disappointment.

Before you give up on that perfect name and start the whole process again from scratch, know there might still be hope.

Registered domain names are sometimes still availableif you know how to find the owner.

People invest in domain names for a number of different reasons. Sometimes, its to start their own website at that domain. Sometimes its purely for investment purposes. And in a few cases, it may be for a website idea that either never comes to fruition, or that falls off the owners radar over time.

If the website youre interested in isnt being actively used and updated, then the owner may be happy to hear from an interested buyer. And even if the owner is clearly using the domain name right now, if youre willing to spend enough to make a sale worth it to them you may still have a chance.

In both cases, you should anticipate spending more for the domain name than if you went with something no one else owns yet. But if youre really set on that domain name, its worth trying your chances.

Find The Information You Need In Whois Records

How to find out who owns a domain name

If the domain owner is interested in selling their domain, their contact information is typically available in the Whois records. However, youll sometimes find that the information youre looking for has been blocked by the domain provider for privacy reasons.

If the domain that youre interested in is being sold by someone who is looking for a willing buyer, the steps outlined above is the easiest way to start negotiating a purchase. But if the seller has hidden their contact information or is not interested in selling their domain, dont despair! There are workarounds for those who are interested in a domain that has already been registered.

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Who Is The Domain Owner

Domain names are owned by whoever first registered the web address with an accredited registrar, such as Domain.com. In order for that person to maintain ownership, they have to pay registration fees and ensure that all of their contact details are up to date.

Once a person has legally registered for a domain name, and has given all of the relevant personal information to an accredited registrar, that individual owns the rights to that web address. They are in sole possession of that web address and have the right to sell it at any time. The owner can transfer domain name ownership to a new user if they care to do so.

Find Out Who Is The Owner Of A Domain Name

Have you ever wanted to have a certain domain name, but it was taken? Today we will walk you through the steps of finding out who owns the domain.

So, you have a new and amazing idea for a site. Great, you spent hours trying to come up with a simple yet catchy domain name. Now you try to register it, but a very unfortunate thing happens someone has already claimed your desired domain name.

Although initially, it could be a little bit of a let-down that your dream domain name is already taken, there are a few solutions you could try. One option is to rebrand and come up with a different name or try to purchase this name from the owner, the latter option being the best if you already have a part of the site ready.

Do not forget, even a registered domain name is still possibly available if you can find the owner. Actually, buying and reselling domains is a big business in itself.

Recommended Reading: What Is Domain Name Registration

What Information Shows Up In A Whois Lookup Result

Using our WHOIS domain lookup tool, you can see where a domain is registered, which DNS servers the domain name redirects to, its creation, renewal, and expiration dates, as well as other contact information, all of which allows you to contact its owner, or even transfer the domain name to another registrar if its one thats already in your possession.

However, not every piece of domain information is made public in a WHOIS lookup. Depending on the domain ending, also known as a TLD, you may be able to use WHOIS domain lookup privacy features that allow you to hide some of your domain name information in a WHOIS lookup. At Gandi, you can protect sensitive data from WHOIS lookup tools for all eligible domain names for free.

If you already own a domain, a WHOIS lookup is a great way to check what information is publicly visible when others do a domain lookup. Making sure everything that appears in a WHOIS domain lookup is accurate is also very important in a legal context, but also in order to facilitate future domain name transfers. WHOIS lookup is also an easy way to make sure your domain has been properly renewed since the domain lookup results will show your domain’s expiration date.

Why Look Up A Domain Owner

Who Is Lookup – How To Find Out Who Owns A Domain Name

There are many reasons someone would want to look up a domain owner. Often, its because the owner can furnish information about the domain and website that no one else can. Its also common for domain owners to search themselves in order to confirm that their website is being accurately represented online.

Other reasons to look up a domain owner:

Recommended Reading: What Is A Domain Host Site

Why Finding A Domain Owner Is Important

Finding a website owner could be important for 2 reasons:

  • Availability of the domain. The domain name you want might be taken, but it may be available to buy.
  • Credibility of the domain. The domain you want may have been resold many times, which could lead to website security issues.
  • For instance, if nameboy.com was resold by a lot of different website owners and wasnt protected with an SSL certificate, it could be unsafe. It couldve even been hacked!

    This could lead to more work on your part by having to get additional online security for that website.

    A site thats unsafe can affect website rankings in the search engines, in a bad way. If it hasnt been maintained, that could be bad for search.

    If youre not sure how to find this out, heres how to measure your websites SEO performance with Google Analytics to help.

    So, how do you find out who owns a domain name to see if its safe? Lets find out.

    How Can You Protect Your Information

    To combat the negative things that can happen when your private information is published, registrars usually offer an optional WHOIS privacy service. Such services allow the registrar to act as a proxy of the registrant. They publish the proxy contact information on the WHOIS directory, and keep the registrants information private.

    Ideally, you should purchase this kind of service when you register your domain. This prevents the information from getting indexed or cached by WHOIS look-up websites and search engines. However, it can be purchased any time after the domain is registered. The service GoDaddy offers is called Private Registration.

    Its also important to note that not every type of domain is eligible for this privacy service. Some domain extensions dont allow registrants to use a proxy. Others provide their own privacy service. A good rule of thumb is if privacy isnt offered when you purchase the domain, it will either not allow a proxy or will have an alternative service.

    Questions? Feel free to reach out to our amazing help and customer support team. Were here to help!

    Recommended Reading: How To Buy A Org Domain

    Different Methods To Find Who Is The Legal Owner Of A Domain Name

    If you know the domain name of a website then there are some ways through which you can find domain registration details. One of the most common and easiest ways to find a domain owner is by searching on the WHOIS database. There are several other strategies also to find out the domain name owner.

    WHOIS Database

    WHOIS database is a free search tool that is publicly available that contains the details of every single website and domain. WHOIS collects all the information related to the purchase, sale, or transfer of domain names. It keeps the records of active websites and domain names.

    How does WHOIS Works?

    WHOIS is the public database which allows you to search and find the information related to the different domain owner. Anybody can use the WHOIS services to search for the information related to the domain owner.

    However, there are chances that for some domains you may not find any data in WHOIS records. Generally, these domain owners have paid the extra amount to protect their privacy details.

    How To Determine Who Owns A Domain Name

    How to Determine Who Owns a Domain Name

    Naeem MobasharDecember 28, 2010 | Updated: December 9, 201570

    The International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is the organization that authorizes registrars to issue or assign domain names to public. A registrant is the person or entity who is considered to be the domain name owner authorized to make or request for changes to be made in vital information related to domain name. It is, therefore, critically important to know the owner registrant of a domain name and also the person or entity having administrative, billing and technical rights related to domain.

    Recommended Reading: How Much For Wix Domain

    Faq / Frequently Asked Questions

    How do I see information about domain names?

    Use our free WHOIS domain lookup service to see information about domain names. By doing a WHOIS lookup, you can see who owns a particular domain and get information about when the domain expired, its status, and more. You can use these WHOIS lookup results to find whether domains are available or get information about domains you might want to buy all thanks to our WHOIS domain lookup.

    Where can I see details about a domain?

    Use our WHOIS domain lookup tool to get information about a domain. Do a WHOIS domain lookup and get details about the owner, when the domain expires, when it was created, etc. in your WHOIS lookup results. Use these domain lookup results to find out which domains are available or use the WHOIS lookup to get information about domains you may want to purchase.

    VPS or web hosting?

    Generally, a web hosting plan is the simplest way to host a site. Web hosting doesn’t give a lot of control of the hosting infrastructure to the owner of the website. Which is great if you’re not a technical expert, but those looking to more finely tune their use of resources, and control their hosting environment should consider using cloud hosting, a VPS, or dedicated hosting.

    What are Gandi’s mail hosting services?

    Choose an email address based on your domain and take advantage of secure email accounts that let you easily manage your emails on any platform. Our email hosting options:

    • Standard email

    Tips To Find Out Who Owns Domain Name

    You have been brainstorming domain names for a long time. You have used various domain recommendation methods. And eventually, you find out the right name.

    Yet when you try to register your domain name, you find that someone has already bought it.

    Once you give up the ideal name and start the whole cycle a new from scratch, remember that you can still get a better name.

    Occasionally registered domain names can be bought if you know how to locate the user.

    For a variety of different purposes, people invest in domain names. Often you launch your website on this domain. Its just for investment purposes sometimes.

    If you do not regularly use and maintain the website, you are interested in, and then the owner will be happy to hear from an interested buyer. So even though the owner is using the domain name specified at the moment, you may still have a chance if youre willing to invest enough to make a sale worth to them.

    In both cases, you should expect to spend more on the domain name than if you had something that no one else had yet. But its worth trying your odds if you want that domain name.

    Also Check: How To Sell Your Domain Name

    Who Legally Owns A Domain

    Searching for a domains owner can turn up multiple names provided as contacts for functions such as technical support, administration, and billing. But, the legal owner of a website is the registrantthe person or entity in whose name the domain has been registered with a dedicated domain registrar or hosting provider. As long as registration fees are kept up to date, that owner retains full rights to the domain and has sole control over selling it at any time, whether or not the domain is nearing expiration.

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