Why is the WHOIS record for a domain redacted?

The GDPR took effect in 2018 and ICANN issued a Temporary Specification requiring registries and registrars to withhold personal data from public output. Most contact fields for private registrants are now replaced with a redaction notice and a forwarding address. Legitimate access requests go through the registrar or the RDAP tiered-access process.

What is the difference between WHOIS and RDAP?

WHOIS is a plain-text protocol from 1982 with no consistent format, no authentication, and no internationalisation. RDAP returns structured JSON over HTTPS, supports differentiated access, and is standardised in RFC 7480 through 7484. ICANN has required RDAP for gTLDs since 2019, and it is the source we prefer.

Can I find who owns an IP address?

You can find the organisation the block is registered to, which for a datacenter address is the hosting provider rather than the customer running the machine. Smaller allocations sometimes name the end customer in the netname. There is no public record linking a residential address to a person.

The domain looks unregistered but I cannot buy it. Why?

Check the status codes. redemptionPeriod and pendingDelete mean a previous registration expired and is still working through the deletion sequence, which takes about 75 days total. Some registries also reserve names or hold them at premium pricing without showing a registration.

Is a WHOIS lookup visible to the domain owner?

Not through the query itself. RDAP and WHOIS queries go to the registry or registrar, not to the domain holder. Registries log queries and rate-limit them, so heavy automated querying gets throttled or blocked.

WHOIS Lookup

Look up the registration record for a domain or an IP block, RDAP first, with port 43 WHOIS as the fallback.

AS recordAS3303

Structured RDAP from rdap.db.ripe.net.

Allocation

Normalised from RDAP

AS number: AS3303
Netname: SWISSCOM
Holder: CH-UNISOURCE-MNT
Country: Not published
Registry: RIPE — RIPE Network Coordination Centre
Block: Not published
Registered: 2002-09-19T06:54:08Z
Last changed: 2026-08-31T07:35:53Z
Abuse contact: abuse@ip-plus.net
Status: active
Registry server: rdap.db.ripe.net

Raw RDAP JSON

{
  "handle": "AS3303",
  "startAutnum": 3303,
  "endAutnum": 3303,
  "name": "SWISSCOM",
  "status": [
    "active"
  ],
  "entities": [
    {
      "handle": "CH-UNISOURCE-MNT",
      "vcardArray": [
        "vcard",
        [
          [
            "version",
            {},
            "text",
            "4.0"
          ],
          [
            "fn",
            {},
            "text",
            "CH-UNISOURCE-MNT"
          ],
          [
            "kind",
            {},
            "text",
            "individual"
          ]
        ]
      ],
      "roles": [
        "registrant"
      ],
      "links": [
        {
          "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
          "rel": "self",
          "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/entity/CH-UNISOURCE-MNT"
        },
        {
          "value": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms",
          "rel": "copyright",
          "href": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms"
        }
      ],
      "objectClassName": "entity"
    },
    {
      "handle": "ORG-SI1-RIPE",
      "vcardArray": [
        "vcard",
        [
          [
            "version",
            {},
            "text",
            "4.0"
          ],
          [
            "fn",
            {},
            "text",
            "Swisscom (Schweiz) AG"
          ],
          [
            "kind",
            {},
            "text",
            "org"
          ],
          [
            "adr",
            {
              "label": "Postfach\nCH- 3050\nBern\nSWITZERLAND"
            },
            "text",
            [
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              ""
            ]
          ],
          [
            "tel",
            {
              "type": "voice"
            },
            "text",
            "+41582219833"
          ],
          [
            "tel",
            {
              "type": "fax"
            },
            "text",
            "+41582218098"
          ]
        ]
      ],
      "roles": [
        "registrant"
      ],
      "links": [
        {
          "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
          "rel": "self",
          "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/entity/ORG-SI1-RIPE"
        },
        {
          "value": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms",
          "rel": "copyright",
          "href": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms"
        }
      ],
      "objectClassName": "entity"
    },
    {
      "handle": "RIPE-NCC-END-MNT",
      "vcardArray": [
        "vcard",
        [
          [
            "version",
            {},
            "text",
            "4.0"
          ],
          [
            "fn",
            {},
            "text",
            "RIPE-NCC-END-MNT"
          ],
          [
            "kind",
            {},
            "text",
            "individual"
          ],
          [
            "org",
            {},
            "text",
            "ORG-NCC1-RIPE"
          ]
        ]
      ],
      "roles": [
        "registrant"
      ],
      "links": [
        {
          "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
          "rel": "self",
          "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/entity/RIPE-NCC-END-MNT"
        },
        {
          "value": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms",
          "rel": "copyright",
          "href": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms"
        }
      ],
      "objectClassName": "entity"
    },
    {
      "handle": "SIE3-RIPE",
      "vcardArray": [
        "vcard",
        [
          [
            "version",
            {},
            "text",
            "4.0"
          ],
          [
            "fn",
            {},
            "text",
            "Swisscom IP-Plus Engineering"
          ],
          [
            "kind",
            {},
            "text",
            "group"
          ],
          [
            "adr",
            {
              "label": "CH-3050 Bern\nSwitzerland"
            },
            "text",
            [
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              ""
            ]
          ],
          [
            "email",
            {
              "type": "abuse"
            },
            "text",
            "abuse@ip-plus.net"
          ],
          [
            "org",
            {},
            "text",
            "ORG-SI1-RIPE"
          ]
        ]
      ],
      "roles": [
        "administrative",
        "technical"
      ],
      "links": [
        {
          "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
          "rel": "self",
          "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/entity/SIE3-RIPE"
        },
        {
          "value": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms",
          "rel": "copyright",
          "href": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms"
        }
      ],
      "objectClassName": "entity"
    },
    {
      "handle": "SA38246-RIPE",
      "vcardArray": [
        "vcard",
        [
          [
            "version",
            {},
            "text",
            "4.0"
          ],
          [
            "fn",
            {},
            "text",
            "Swisscom Abuse"
          ],
          [
            "kind",
            {},
            "text",
            "group"
          ],
          [
            "adr",
            {
              "label": "Binzring 17, CH-8045 Zuerich"
            },
            "text",
            [
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              "",
              ""
            ]
          ],
          [
            "email",
            {
              "type": "abuse"
            },
            "text",
            "abuse@ip-plus.net"
          ]
        ]
      ],
      "roles": [
        "abuse"
      ],
      "entities": [
        {
          "handle": "CH-UNISOURCE-MNT",
          "vcardArray": [
            "vcard",
            [
              [
                "version",
                {},
                "text",
                "4.0"
              ],
              [
                "fn",
                {},
                "text",
                "CH-UNISOURCE-MNT"
              ],
              [
                "kind",
                {},
                "text",
                "individual"
              ]
            ]
          ],
          "roles": [
            "registrant"
          ],
          "links": [
            {
              "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
              "rel": "self",
              "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/entity/CH-UNISOURCE-MNT"
            },
            {
              "value": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms",
              "rel": "copyright",
              "href": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms"
            }
          ],
          "objectClassName": "entity"
        }
      ],
      "objectClassName": "entity"
    }
  ],
  "remarks": [
    {
      "description": [
        "Swisscom (Switzerland) Ltd",
        "IP-Plus Internet Backbone",
        "",
        "======================================================================",
        "Abuse issues abuse@ip-plus.net",
        "Operational issues noc@ip-plus.net",
        "Peering requests IP-Plus.Peering@swisscom.com",
        "Other info https://as3303.peeringdb.com",
        "AMS-ix route-server",
        "=======================================================================",
        "",
        "COMMUNITY SUPPORT",
        "Community Action/Effect",
        "---------------------------------------------------------------------",
        "3303:300 set local-pref to 300 (same as peers). Default is 400",
        "3303:888 blackhole within AS3303 (up to /32 or /128 allowed, only for customers)",
        "3303:2199 treat as peering route",
        "Inbound",
        "3303:2042 prepend 3x to any peer in Luxembourg",
        "3303:2043 prepend 3x to any peer in Warsaw",
        "3303:2045 prepend 3x to any peer in Nairobi",
        "3303:2046 prepend 3x to any peer in Budapest",
        "3303:2047 prepend 3x to any peer in Sao Paulo",
        "3303:2048 prepend 3x to any peer in Istanbul",
        "3303:2049 prepend 3x to any peer in Taipeh",
        "3303:2050 prepend 3x to any peer in London",
        "3303:2051 prepend 3x to any peer in Amsterdam",
        "3303:2052 prepend 3x to any peer in Frankfurt-Itenos",
        "3303:2053 prepend 3x to any peer in Paris",
        "3303:2054 prepend 3x to any peer in Stockholm",
        "3303:2055 prepend 3x to any peer in Milan",
        "3303:2056 prepend 3x to any peer in Frankfurt-InterXion",
        "3303:2057 prepend 3x to any peer in Hong Kong",
        "3303:2058 prepend 3x to any peer in Singapore",
        "3303:2060 prepend 3x to any peer in Ashburn",
        "3303:2061 prepend 3x to any peer in Los Angeles",
        "3303:2062 prepend 3x to any peer in Chicago",
        "3303:2063 prepend 3x to any peer in Dallas",
        "3303:2064 prepend 3x to any peer in New York",
        "3303:2065 prepend 3x to any peer in Miami",
        "3303:2066 prepend 3x to any peer in Geneva",
        "3303:2067 prepend 3x to any peer in Zurich",
        "3303:2068 prepend 3x to any peer in Bern",
        "3303:2069 prepend 3x to any peer in Basel",
        "3303:2070 prepend 3x to any peer in Olten",
        "3303:2071 prepend 3x to any peer in Lugano/Bellinzona",
        "3303:2072 prepend 3x to any peer in Lausanne",
        "3303:2073 prepend 3x to any peer in Sydney",
        "3303:2074 prepend 3x to any peer in Johannesburg",
        "3303:2075 prepend 3x to any peer in Marseille",
        "3303:2076 prepend 3x to any peer in Madrid",
        "3303:2077 prepend 3x to any peer in Vienna",
        "3303:2078 prepend 3x to any peer in Capetown",
        "3303:2079 prepend 3x to any peer in Tokyo",
        "3303:2080 prepend 3x to any peer in Perth",
        "3303:2081 prepend 3x to any peer in Kiev",
        "3303:2082 prepend 3x to any peer in Mumbai",
        "3303:2083 prepend 3x to any peer in Fortaleza",
        "3303:2084 prepend 3x to any peer in Sofia",
        "3303:2085 prepend 3x tp any peer in Toronto",
        "3303:2086 prepend 3x tp any peer in Duesseldorf",
        "3303:2087 prepend 3x tp any peer in Copenhagen",
        "3303:2088 prepend 3x to any peer in Seoul",
        "3303:2089 prepend 3x to any peer in Muenchen",
        "3303:2090 prepend 3x to any peer in Lupfig",
        "3303:2091 prepend 3x to any peer in St.Gallen/Wil",
        "3303:2092 prepend 3x to any peer in Lagos",
        "3303:2093 prepend 3x to any peer in Torino",
        "3303:2094 prepend 3x to any peer in Roma",
        "3303:2095 prepend 3x to any peer in Luzern",
        "3303:2096 prepend 3x to any peer in Seattle",
        "3303:2097 prepend 3x to any peer in Dublin",
        "3303:2098 prepend 3x to any peer in Chur",
        "3303:2110 do not announce to Google GGC",
        "3303:2111 do not announce to Netflix OCA",
        "3303:2142 do not announce to any peer in Luxembourg",
        "3303:2143 do not announce to any peer in Warsaw",
        "3303:2145 do not announce to any peer in Nairobi",
        "3303:2146 do not announce to any peer in Budapest",
        "3303:2147 do not announce to any peer in Sao Paulo",
        "3303:2148 do not announce to any peer in Istanbul",
        "3303:2149 do not announce to any peer in Taipeh",
        "3303:2150 do not announce to any peer in London",
        "3303:2151 do not announce to any peer in Amsterdam",
        "3303:2152 do not announce to any peer in Frankfurt-Itenos",
        "3303:2153 do not announce to any peer in Paris",
        "3303:2154 do not announce to any peer in Stockholm",
        "3303:2155 do not announce to any peer in Milan",
        "3303:2156 do not announce to any peer in Frankfurt-InterXion",
        "3303:2157 do not announce to any peer in Hong Kong",
        "3303:2158 do not announce to any peer in Singapore",
        "3303:2160 do not announce to any peer in Ashburn",
        "3303:2161 do not announce to any peer in Los Angeles",
        "3303:2162 do not announce to any peer in Chicago",
        "3303:2163 do not announce to any peer in Dallas",
        "3303:2164 do not announce to any peer in New York",
        "3303:2165 do not announce to any peer in Miami",
        "3303:2166 do not announce to any peer in Geneva",
        "3303:2167 do not announce to any peer in Zurich",
        "3303:2168 do not announce to any peer in Bern",
        "3303:2169 do not announce to any peer in Basel",
        "3303:2170 do not announce to any peer in Olten",
        "3303:2171 do not announce to any peer in Lugano/Bellinzona",
        "3303:2172 do not announce to any peer in Lausanne",
        "3303:2173 do not announce to any peer in Sydney",
        "3303:2174 do not announce to any peer in Johannesburg",
        "3303:2175 do not announce to any peer in Marseille",
        "3303:2176 do not announce to any peer in Madrid",
        "3303:2177 do not announce to any peer in Vienna",
        "3303:2178 do not announce to any peer in Capetown",
        "3303:2179 do not announce to any peer in Tokyo",
        "3303:2180 do not announce to any peer in Perth",
        "3303:2181 do not announce to any peer in Kiev",
        "3303:2182 do not announce to any peer in Mumbai",
        "3303:2183 do not announce to any peer in Fortaleza",
        "3303:2184 do not announce to any peer in Sofia",
        "3303:2185 do not announce to any peer in Toronto",
        "3303:2186 do not announce to any peer in Duesseldorf",
        "3303:2187 do not announce to any peer in Copenhagen",
        "3303:2188 do not announce to any peer in Seoul",
        "3303:2189 do not announce to any peer in Muenchen",
        "3303:2190 do not announce to any peer in Lupfig",
        "3303:2191 do not announce to any peer in St.Gallen/Wil",
        "3303:2192 do not announce to any peer in Lagos",
        "3303:2193 do not announce to any peer in Torino",
        "3303:2194 do not announce to any peer in Roma",
        "3303:2195 do not announce to any peer in Luzern",
        "3303:2196 do not announce to any peer in Seattle",
        "3303:2197 do not announce to any peer in Dublin",
        "3303:2198 do not announce to any peer in Chur",
        "Outbound",
        "3303:3042 route received in Luxembourg",
        "3303:3043 route received in Warsaw",
        "3303:3045 route received in Nairobi",
        "3303:3046 route received in Budapest",
        "3303:3047 route received in Sao Paulo",
        "3303:3048 route received in Istanbul",
        "3303:3049 route received in Taipeh",
        "3303:3050 route received in London",
        "3303:3051 route received in Amsterdam",
        "3303:3052 route received in Frankfurt-Itenos",
        "3303:3053 route received in Paris",
        "3303:3054 route received in Stockholm",
        "3303:3055 route received in Milan",
        "3303:3056 route received in Frankfurt-InterXion",
        "3303:3057 route received in Hong Kong",
        "3303:3058 route received in Singapore",
        "3303:3060 route received in Ashburn",
        "3303:3061 route received in Los Angeles",
        "3303:3062 route received in Chicago",
        "3303:3063 route received in Dallas",
        "3303:3064 route received in New York",
        "3303:3065 route received in Miami",
        "3303:3066 route received in Geneva",
        "3303:3067 route received in Zurich",
        "3303:3068 route received in Bern",
        "3303:3069 route received in Basel",
        "3303:3070 route received in Olten",
        "3303:3071 route received in Lugano/Bellinzona",
        "3303:3072 route received in Lausanne",
        "3303:3073 route received in Sydney",
        "3303:3074 route received in Johannesburg",
        "3303:3075 route received in Marseille",
        "3303:3076 route received in Madrid",
        "3303:3077 route received in Vienna",
        "3303:3078 route received in Capetown",
        "3303:3079 route received in Tokyo",
        "3303:3080 route received in Perth",
        "3303:3081 route received in Kiev",
        "3303:3082 route received in Mumbai",
        "3303:3083 route received in Fortaleza",
        "3303:3084 route received in Sofia",
        "3303:3085 route received in Toronto",
        "3303:3086 route received in Duesseldorf",
        "3303:3087 route received in Copenhagen",
        "3303:3088 route received in Seoul",
        "3303:3089 route received in Muenchen",
        "3303:3090 route received in Lupfig",
        "3303:3091 route received in St.Gallen/Wil",
        "3303:3092 route received in Lagos",
        "3303:3093 route received in Torino",
        "3303:3094 route received in Roma",
        "3303:3095 route received in Luzern",
        "3303:3096 route received in Seattle",
        "3303:3097 route received in Dublin",
        "3303:3098 route received in Chur",
        "3303:1000 customer route",
        "3303:1004 peering route",
        "3303:1005 North American route",
        "3303:1006 European route",
        "3303:1007 Swiss route",
        "3303:1009 Asian route",
        "3303:1014 African route",
        "3303:1025 South American route",
        "========================================================================"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    {
      "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
      "rel": "rdap-up",
      "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnums/rirSearch1/rdap-up/AS3303",
      "type": "application/rdap+json"
    },
    {
      "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
      "rel": "rdap-up rdap-active",
      "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnums/rirSearch1/rdap-up/AS3303?status=active",
      "type": "application/rdap+json"
    },
    {
      "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
      "rel": "rdap-down",
      "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnums/rirSearch1/rdap-down/AS3303",
      "type": "application/rdap+json"
    },
    {
      "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
      "rel": "rdap-top",
      "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnums/rirSearch1/rdap-top/AS3303",
      "type": "application/rdap+json"
    },
    {
      "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
      "rel": "rdap-top rdap-active",
      "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnums/rirSearch1/rdap-top/AS3303?status=active",
      "type": "application/rdap+json"
    },
    {
      "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
      "rel": "rdap-bottom",
      "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnums/rirSearch1/rdap-bottom/AS3303",
      "type": "application/rdap+json"
    },
    {
      "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
      "rel": "self",
      "href": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
      "type": "application/rdap+json"
    },
    {
      "value": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms",
      "rel": "copyright",
      "href": "http://www.ripe.net/data-tools/support/documentation/terms"
    }
  ],
  "events": [
    {
      "eventAction": "registration",
      "eventDate": "2002-09-19T06:54:08Z"
    },
    {
      "eventAction": "last changed",
      "eventDate": "2026-08-31T07:35:53Z"
    }
  ],
  "rdapConformance": [
    "nro_rdap_profile_asn_flat_0",
    "rirSearch1",
    "autnums",
    "cidr0",
    "rdap_level_0",
    "nro_rdap_profile_0",
    "redacted"
  ],
  "notices": [
    {
      "title": "Filtered",
      "description": [
        "This output has been filtered."
      ]
    },
    {
      "title": "Whois Inaccuracy Reporting",
      "description": [
        "If you see inaccuracies in the results, please visit:"
      ],
      "links": [
        {
          "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
          "rel": "inaccuracy-report",
          "href": "https://www.ripe.net/contact-form?topic=ripe_dbm&show_form=true",
          "type": "text/html"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "title": "Source",
      "description": [
        "Objects returned came from source",
        "RIPE"
      ]
    },
    {
      "title": "Terms and Conditions",
      "description": [
        "This is the RIPE Database query service. The objects are in RDAP format."
      ],
      "links": [
        {
          "value": "https://rdap.db.ripe.net/autnum/3303",
          "rel": "terms-of-service",
          "href": "http://www.ripe.net/db/support/db-terms-conditions.pdf",
          "type": "application/pdf"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "port43": "whois.ripe.net",
  "objectClassName": "autnum",
  "redacted": [
    {
      "name": {
        "description": "Personal e-mail information"
      },
      "reason": {
        "description": "Personal data"
      },
      "prePath": "$.entities[?(@.handle=='ORG-SI1-RIPE')].vcardArray[1][?(@[0]=='e-mail')]",
      "method": "removal"
    },
    {
      "name": {
        "description": "Personal e-mail information"
      },
      "reason": {
        "description": "Personal data"
      },
      "prePath": "$.entities[?(@.handle=='SIE3-RIPE')].vcardArray[1][?(@[0]=='e-mail')]",
      "method": "removal"
    },
    {
      "name": {
        "description": "Personal e-mail information"
      },
      "reason": {
        "description": "Personal data"
      },
      "prePath": "$.entities[?(@.handle=='SA38246-RIPE')].vcardArray[1][?(@[0]=='e-mail')]",
      "method": "removal"
    }
  ]
}

Cached for six hours. The same record as JSON: /api/v1/rdap. Add &raw=1 for the unmodified registry document.

RDAP first, WHOIS as a fallback

RDAP gives us typed fields, so the normalised view on this page is a mapping rather than a guess. Classic WHOIS output has no schema at all; each registry invented its own labels, and parsing it reliably is a losing game. When a registry publishes no RDAP endpoint, usually an older country-code registry, we fall back to a port 43 query and show the raw text with only light normalisation. The result labels which path was used.

Reading the raw output

The raw response stays collapsed under the normalised view. Open it when a field looks wrong, when the registry publishes something we did not map, or when you need the exact text for a dispute or a transfer request. Registry text is authoritative; our normalisation is a convenience.

Caching

Results cache for six hours. WHOIS and RDAP data changes on the scale of days, registries rate-limit aggressively, and hammering them for a value that did not move helps nobody. If you need a fresh read after a change you just made, wait out the cache rather than retrying in a loop.

About this tool

Enter a domain or an address. We query RDAP first, the structured JSON successor to WHOIS, and fall back to port 43 WHOIS where a registry runs none. A domain returns the registrar, creation and expiry dates, nameservers, and EPP status codes, and an address returns the RIR, netname, organisation, country, and abuse contact. Personal details are usually redacted under privacy law, and results cache for six hours.

How to read the result

Registrar: The accredited company through which the domain was registered, which is where it was bought rather than who owns it. A transfer changes this field while the registrant stays the same.
Creation, updated, and expiry dates: Registry timestamps in UTC for when the domain was created, last changed, and paid through. The expiry date is the paid-through date, not the deletion date, and after it a domain usually passes through a renewal grace period, then redemption, then pending-delete, roughly 75 days in total.
Nameservers: The nameservers recorded at the registry as the delegation for this domain. They can differ from the NS records the zone itself serves, when a zone was changed without updating the delegation, which is a lame delegation.
EPP status codes: Registry and registrar locks that say what can be done with the domain right now. clientTransferProhibited is normal and prevents unauthorised transfers, serverHold means the domain is not published in the zone at all, and pendingDelete and redemptionPeriod mean an expired domain is moving toward deletion.
Registrant details or a redaction notice: For most generic and European domains the registrant name, address, and email are withheld under GDPR and ICANN Temporary Specification policy, leaving a registrar-operated forwarding address. Some country registries publish more, and business registrations often do.
For IP addresses, RIR, netname, org, and abuse contact: The Regional Internet Registry that allocated the block, the registered netname, the holding organisation, and the abuse mailbox to complain to. For a hosting provider the organisation is the provider rather than their customer, and that mailbox is where a complaint about the customer goes.

Questions people ask

Why is the WHOIS record for a domain redacted?: The GDPR took effect in 2018 and ICANN issued a Temporary Specification requiring registries and registrars to withhold personal data from public output. Most contact fields for private registrants are now replaced with a redaction notice and a forwarding address. Legitimate access requests go through the registrar or the RDAP tiered-access process.
What is the difference between WHOIS and RDAP?: WHOIS is a plain-text protocol from 1982 with no consistent format, no authentication, and no internationalisation. RDAP returns structured JSON over HTTPS, supports differentiated access, and is standardised in RFC 7480 through 7484. ICANN has required RDAP for gTLDs since 2019, and it is the source we prefer.
Can I find who owns an IP address?: You can find the organisation the block is registered to, which for a datacenter address is the hosting provider rather than the customer running the machine. Smaller allocations sometimes name the end customer in the netname. There is no public record linking a residential address to a person.
The domain looks unregistered but I cannot buy it. Why?: Check the status codes. redemptionPeriod and pendingDelete mean a previous registration expired and is still working through the deletion sequence, which takes about 75 days total. Some registries also reserve names or hold them at premium pricing without showing a registration.
Is a WHOIS lookup visible to the domain owner?: Not through the query itself. RDAP and WHOIS queries go to the registry or registrar, not to the domain holder. Registries log queries and rate-limit them, so heavy automated querying gets throttled or blocked.

Last reviewed 2026-09-05.