Protect Your Online Identity: Domain Privacy + Protection
Your personal information and domain name are safeguarded thanks to the useful set of features included in Domain Privacy + Protection. Your personal contact information is hidden from the WHOIS database, shielding you from third-party spammers, identity thieves, hackers, and other bad guys.
Monitoring blacklists and virus scanning of your website also protects the reputation of your domain name. Knowing that your website is routinely tested for viruses and that your domain is not included on any blacklists will give you peace of mind.
In this article, we will discuss:
- How Does Domain Privacy Work?
- Who Needs Domain Privacy + Protection?
- How to Purchase Domain Privacy + Protection?
- Blacklist and Malware Monitoring
- Review
How Does Domain Privacy Work?
ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) requires registrars (Web.com) to gather and make the contact details of the registrant, which includes name, address, phone number, and email address publicly available at the time of domain name registration. Spam, unwanted solicitation, and even identity theft may result from this exposure.
With Domain Privacy + Protection, it replaces the domain owner's personal information. In this way, the domain owner's privacy is protected while maintaining compliance with ICANN's regulations. In addition to domain privacy benefits, it consists of extra security precautions to protect the domain from typical threats like phishing attacks and unauthorized transfers.
Who Needs Domain Privacy + Protection?
Anyone who registers a domain name and wishes to keep their personal information, such as name, address, phone number, and email address, to ensure domain privacy and protection. For people and companies who wish to reduce the risk of identity theft, prevent spam, and safeguard against possible hackers, this is crucial. It's advantageous for people who want to protect their internet anonymity or the confidentiality of their personal or company information.
How to Purchase Domain Privacy + Protection?
Follow the steps below on how to purchase Domain Privacy + Protection for your domain name.
- Log in to your Account Manager via https://www.web.com/my-account/login.
- On the left side of the page, select Domains.
- If you have multiple domains, you will see a list of your domain names. If you don’t have Domain Privacy + Protection on any domains, you will see a link that you can click to purchase Privacy + Protection.
- If you only have one domain name, click the Turn on button under Privacy is off.
- After clicking either link, you will see a pop-up message. Confirm the payment details are correct. Then, click Buy Now.
How to Turn Domain Privacy + Protection On and Off?
Making sure that domain privacy is enabled is the first thing you should do. Your information will be hidden from the public WHOIS database by domain privacy, protecting you from spammers, hackers, and other threats.
To see how your information appears publicly on the WHOIS database, visit the Domain Contact Preview area. You can read your personal information in the preview if privacy is disabled.
There may be times when you need to turn off Domain Privacy temporarily. If you turn privacy off, the information shown under the Domain Contacts section of the Domain Contacts card will be the information seen in the public-facing WHOIS database.
Visit How to Manage My Domain Contacts or WHOIS Information? for more information.
SMS Alerts
When something on your domain changes that could impact your website, you want to know immediately. SMS alerts ensure your domain is always secure, and you are aware anytime one of the following critical changes are made.
- The domain lock is disabled.
- Domain privacy is turned on or off.
- Domain contact information is changed.
- DNS change.
- You can customize your SMS domain alerts to receive notifications about the specific changes that you want to be notified about.
- Click Domains at the left navigation menu of your account.
- Choose the domain name you want to manage. If you only have one domain name, you will skip this step and be taken straight to the Domain Details page.
- Scroll down to the Domain Security section.
- If you don’t have a trusted phone set up, you will be prompted to do so now. Click Setup next to SMS Security Alerts. If you have a trusted phone number, click Manage, then skip to step 8.
- Click Continue to begin
- Add the trusted phone number and click Next.
- You will be sent a verification code to confirm it is your phone number. Enter the code, then click Verify.
- Now, you will see the SMS setup page with all the options checked. We strongly recommend keeping the settings checked, or you can uncheck any notifications you don’t want to receive. Click Save to complete the SMS setup.
You have turned on SMS Alerts.
If you want to change from your trusted phone number to a custom one, see the section titled Change Phone Number for SMS Alerts.
- Scroll down to the Domain Security section.
- Click Manage next to SMS Security Alerts.
- Click Change next to your phone number.
- Choose whether to switch to your Trusted Phone or use a Custom Phone, then click Select. If you want to change your Trusted Phone Number, see How to Add and Change a Trusted Phone Number.
- If you’re adding or changing your custom phone number, add the new phone number and click Next.
- On the next screen, enter the code you received on your phone and click Verify.
- You will see the SMS setup page with all the options checked. Click Save to complete the SMS setup.
You have updated the phone number for SMS Alerts.
- Scroll down to the Domain Security section.
- Click the Turn Off button.
- You will see a pop-up confirming the change. Click Close.
You have turned off SMS Alerts.
Blacklist and Malware Monitoring
Domain Privacy + Protection also ensures that your domain reputation is protected through blacklist monitoring and malware scanning of your website. If your website is infected with malware or is added to a blacklist, this can negatively impact your website's performance and reputation, causing you to lose potential customers and revenue.
Visit Getting Started with SiteLock for more information.
Review
Understand how Domain Privacy + Protection protects your personal information and domain name.
- Protection from Spam and Identity Theft: Domain Privacy + Protection hides your domain contact details (name, address, phone, email) from the WHOIS database, shielding you from spammers and potential identity theft.
- Enhanced Security: It goes beyond privacy, offering additional security measures like monitoring blacklists and scanning your website for malware. This protects your domain reputation and prevents potential harm.
- Benefits for Everyone: Anyone who registers a domain can benefit from Domain Privacy + Protection, especially those who value online anonymity or want to avoid unwanted solicitations.