Question 1

Why can't I see the domain owner's name and email?

Accepted Answer

Since GDPR took effect in 2018, most domain registrars redact personal registrant information (name, email, phone, address) from public WHOIS/RDAP records by default. Only the registrar, registration dates and nameservers remain publicly visible for most domains.

Question 2

What is RDAP and how is it different from WHOIS?

Accepted Answer

RDAP (Registration Data Access Protocol) is the modern, structured-JSON replacement for the legacy WHOIS text protocol. It returns the same type of registration data in a standardized, machine-readable format and is gradually replacing WHOIS across all domain registries.

Question 3

Why does it say domain not found for a domain I know is registered?

Accepted Answer

Some newer or smaller country-code TLDs (ccTLDs) don't yet have a public RDAP server, so the lookup can fail even for registered domains. Try checking the registry's own WHOIS page directly for those TLDs.

Question 4

What do the domain status codes mean?

Accepted Answer

Codes like 'clientTransferProhibited' or 'serverDeleteProhibited' (EPP status codes) indicate locks placed by the registrar or registry to prevent unauthorized transfers, deletions or updates — these are normal security measures, not warnings of a problem.

WHOIS Checker

What Is WHOIS?

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