WHOIS Lookup
Check domain registration information, ownership details, and expiration dates.
Note: Currently only .com domains are supported. Support for other domain extensions (.org, .net, .co, etc.) is coming soon.
What is WHOIS?
WHOIS is a query and response protocol used for querying databases that store the registered users or assignees of an Internet resource, such as a domain name or IP address. It provides information about who owns a domain, when it was registered, and when it expires.
This information is crucial for verifying domain ownership, investigating potential fraud, protecting intellectual property, and understanding the history of a domain. Many domain registrars now offer privacy protection services that mask personal information in WHOIS records.
Common Uses for WHOIS
Security Research
Cybersecurity professionals use WHOIS data to investigate suspicious domains, track malicious actors, and identify patterns in domain registration for threat intelligence.
Business Verification
Companies verify the legitimacy of business partners and vendors by checking their domain registration information, ensuring they're dealing with authentic entities.
Domain Acquisition
Individuals and businesses looking to acquire a domain can use WHOIS to identify the current owner and find contact information for negotiating a purchase.
Expiration Monitoring
Track domain expiration dates to catch valuable domains that may become available, or monitor your own domains to ensure timely renewals.
In-depth guide
WHOIS is the public registry of domain registration data. Every time someone registers or renews a domain, the registrar publishes a record showing when it was registered, when it expires, which nameservers it uses, and (depending on privacy settings) who owns it. A WHOIS lookup is the quickest way to evaluate a domain you're considering acquiring, investigate a suspicious site, or recover lost ownership details for a domain you already control.
What a WHOIS record contains
A complete WHOIS record returns the registrar (e.g. GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare Registrar), the creation date, the most recent update date, the expiration date, the current nameservers, the domain status codes (e.g. clientTransferProhibited), and the registrant, administrative, and technical contacts. Since GDPR took effect in 2018, contact data for individual registrants is typically redacted or replaced with a privacy-service proxy; organization registrations and many ccTLDs still show full contact details.
How to read the dates and status codes
The creation date is the strongest signal of legitimacy — a domain registered three days ago and used in a 'too good to be true' offer is almost always a scam. The expiration date matters for due diligence on an acquisition; a domain expiring within 30 days may be in transfer lockout. Status codes prefixed with 'client' are set by the registrar; status codes prefixed with 'server' are set by the registry and are stronger. clientTransferProhibited is normal and good — it prevents unauthorized transfer. clientHold or serverHold means the domain is suspended and not resolving.
Common use cases
Brand-protection teams monitor WHOIS for newly registered typosquatting domains and lookalikes. Security analysts use creation dates and registrar patterns to triage phishing campaigns. Domain investors use expiration dates to time outreach. Businesses recovering control of a long-abandoned company domain check WHOIS for the original registrant email and current registrar to start the recovery process. M&A due diligence routinely includes WHOIS verification to confirm that the seller actually controls the domains they claim to own.
Frequently asked questions
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