is registering myname.com safe? i'm considering purchasing the domain but after reading some posts on this site i'm realizing how easy it is to get personal information from the WhoIs and such. basically, i'm just curious how much info can be acquired about me if i used myname.com and someone looked up my WhoIs.

just wanted some opinions on the subject

You can register the domain and make it private so others cant see your personal information if they do a WHOIS Check on your domain :D

I would say if you ever intended a website for it, sure then go ahead and register it. Whois info can be obtained on any domain anyway simply by lookup. 2 members of my family both wanted the .com registered with their name and they were taken (STRANGE!) so my advice is if you are thinking about it and its available, you better register it.
good luck

how can you make your personal info private? i registered another domain through domaindirect and they told me that i couldn't hide my info.

maybe my first mistake was registering through them, but i don't want to make the same mistake again. is bigdaddy the place to register?

godaddy.com allow you to keep your information private if you wish to do so. I'm assuming that is what you were referring to. It's an add-on feature and costs a little bit extra.

I registered MyName.com and I've had no problems! ;)

My name domain is taken too. :(

And it's rather uncommon.

Originally posted by Hoobastank68
You can register the domain and make it private so others cant see your personal information if they do a WHOIS Check on your domain :D

Just FYI, unless you go to a specific comapny that can "mask" the WHOIS information leagaly then you run the risk of the registar, OR ICANN removing the domain. Providing flase information, normaly IS cause for removal.
If you'd like examples, let me know. (I know a few)

If you don't want your personal information listed on WHOIS, I suggest one of 3 things.
1) Find a registrar that can legaly 'mask' your information
2) Get a PO box and alterantive information that is still legal
3) Find a host, that will put thier information in there for you

Now, the 3rd option, some hosts do anyway, that way they get informed (e-mailed) if you're intending on 'moving' to another host. A good host, in my opinion, won't do this to be "notified" but to 'help' their client's keep their privacy. big difference


Either way, with all of the different hosting companies out there, and their different policies, it's always a good idea to check your WHOIS info out occassionaly, to make sure it's all "correct" to how it needs to be.

Originally posted by teramonster
My name domain is taken too. :(

And it's rather uncommon.

In our cases the .coms were gone but the .net was available so we registered those. We were quite surprised though when we found these already gone.

3) Find a host, that will put thier information in there for you In my opinion, never....repeat never....repeat never....allow you domain to be registered in a host's name. Too many horror stories regarding recovering your name. Perhaps anonymous registration with someone such as Godaddy where it is in their name is acceptable because of their credibility, history, and size....but never with a host.

thanks for the info everyone

I agree with incognito.. 2 clients of mine complained about their website not working.. and it turned out that the registrar had change the nameservers to something weird..

I agree with incognito.. 2 clients of mine complained about their website not working.. and it turned out that the registrar had change the nameservers to something weird..

For the phone number, consider getting a free voice/fax number from a service like j2.com, laservoicemail.com, k7.net, digitalmail.com, callwave.com, etc.

For the address, consider using your work address, or a PO box number (at least in the US, private mailbox services tend to be much more expensive than USPS PO boxes), or ask if your hosting service minds if you use their address (but DON'T register the domain name in their name, and DON'T use their e-mail address for the admin contact or domain registrant).

Originally posted by Incognito
In my opinion, never....repeat never....repeat never....allow you domain to be registered in a host's name. Too many horror stories regarding recovering your name. Perhaps anonymous registration with someone such as Godaddy where it is in their name is acceptable because of their credibility, history, and size....but never with a host.

That would depend on the host, really. If you have a decent relationship with the host already, there's little danger in having their information remain as the contact. We do masking for clients on request - even some new clients who specifically request it as part of their account setup - and there have been no issues related to it. Other than us getting junk mail at our PO and spam in our mailboxes that was destined for the client. :)

There's a .name extension just for this purpose. first.last.name. Might as well make use of the extension if it's offered instead of using up common extensions.

Originally posted by Incognito
In my opinion, never....repeat never....repeat never....allow you domain to be registered in a host's name. Too many horror stories regarding recovering your name.

That's kind of tarring all hosts with the scruffy brush that blights a few. Would you stop buying cars because you had a bad experience with one particular car dealer?

I will happily register a domain name for a client who wants to avoid being public or avoid receiving spam (and have done so on a number of occasions), but if a client wants to transfer a domain I'll do it immediately. I think most hosts would.