About WHOIS & Domain Registration
What is WHOIS?
WHOIS is a query protocol used to look up registration records for domain names. It returns details including the registrar, registration and expiry dates, name servers, and contact information where not redacted for privacy.
GDPR & Privacy
Since 2018, most domain registrars redact personal contact information from public WHOIS records under GDPR. Technical data such as dates, name servers, and registrar details remain publicly available.
Expiry & Renewal
Domain registrations must be renewed periodically. Our tool shows exactly how many days remain before a domain expires — with colour-coded urgency for domains expiring within 90 days.
DNSSEC
DNS Security Extensions add cryptographic signatures to DNS records, protecting against spoofing and poisoning attacks. A signed domain provides stronger authenticity guarantees for visitors.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a WHOIS lookup?
A WHOIS lookup queries the domain registration database to return information about who registered a domain, when it was created, when it expires, which registrar manages it, and which name servers it uses.
Does this tool use modern RDAP or traditional WHOIS?
Our tool prioritizes the Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP), the modern, highly accurate, and IANA-standardized replacement for traditional WHOIS. We dynamically query the IANA Bootstrap registry to fetch the most authoritative, real-time data directly from the registry, falling back to secure WHOIS proxies only for legacy top-level domains.
Do you support international domains (IDNs) and emojis?
Yes. Our tool features native auto-conversion for Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs). You can directly enter domains containing foreign characters, accents, or emojis (such as münchen.de), and our system will automatically convert them to the standard Punycode format (xn--...) to query the registry.
What time zone are the domain expiration dates shown in?
To ensure absolute accuracy for security researchers, domain administrators, and drop-catchers, all registration, update, and expiration timestamps are retrieved and displayed in precise Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). This prevents countdown errors caused by local client time zone differences.
Why is registrant information redacted?
Since GDPR came into effect in 2018, most registrars redact personal contact information from public WHOIS records to protect registrant privacy. Technical data such as exact dates, name servers, and registrar details remain publicly available.
If a domain returns no data, does it mean I can register it?
Not always. While an "object not found" response often means the domain is unregistered and available, it can also indicate that the domain is reserved by the registry, classified as a premium domain, or that the registry restricts public access to its data. We provide a quick link to verify true availability.
What does domain status clientTransferProhibited mean?
This status code means the domain is locked against transfers to another registrar. It is the default and recommended EPP security setting that prevents unauthorized domain hijacking.
What is DNSSEC?
DNSSEC (DNS Security Extensions) adds cryptographic signatures to DNS records, protecting against spoofing and cache poisoning attacks. A signed domain provides stronger authenticity guarantees for visitors.
Can I look up a subdomain or a country-code TLD?
Yes. We utilize an extensive 840+ multi-part Top Level Domain (TLD) rule set. If you enter a subdomain (like blog.bbc.co.uk), the tool automatically identifies the correct registrable root (bbc.co.uk) and shows its authoritative registration details.