Domain registrar and hosting provider Blacknight has launched a new service called WHOIS Privacy that protects the identity and personal information of the domain registrant.
The service effectively ensures that when someone does a search for the WHOIS information on a domain name, the name of the registrant along with their address and phone number are no longer publicly available.
The service is provided by WHOIS Privacy, a subsidiary of Blacknight.
The service will initially be available for .com and .net domains but additional extensions will be added.
“We have been planning to offer a WHOIS Privacy service for some time,” Blacknight chief executive Michele Neylon said.
“We have seen the demand for the service grow, as individuals want to be able to register domain names without publishing their personal data to WHOIS.”
The ICANN-accredited registrar says it has taken bold measures in the Terms of Use agreement to protect against potential abuse issues.
“We are strong believers in our customer’s right to freedom of expression. However, we are very conscious of abuse to such a system and the terms of service provided are very stringent. Basically, if you think you can use our WHOIS privacy service just to register domains and abuse them, the service will be terminated quickly,” Neylon said.
