Although it often appears "WHOIS" or "WhoIs", the term is not an acronym. It means
literally "Who is", referring to the searchable database that stores domain information
for every URL currently registered on the Internet. Think of the WHOIS database
as the "white pages" of the Internet neighborhood.
Search the
GoDaddy.com WHOIS database
whenever you want to know who a particular Web site belongs to. You may even be
able to find the name and contact information of the business or individual who
holds the registration on that domain. If the registration is private, specific
information such as the holder's name, address, phone number and email address will
be hidden from public view.
There are a number of reasons why you might want to use the
GoDaddy.com WHOIS database:
If you're a domainer, you might have your eye on a particular domain name(s) and
want to know when it expires in the hopes of registering it yourself. You might
also wish to approach the registrant with a private purchase offer.
If you are the legal owner of a copyrighted name and you find someone else has
registered a domain with that name in it, you'll want to take legal action against
whoever's infringed on your rights by "cyber-squatting" on your Internet territory.
If you come across your own original content reproduced without permission on
another Web site, you may want to look up the name of the domain registrant in order
to file a DMCA complaint against him or her. This federal act makes it illegal for
anyone to produce or distribute another's original material on the Internet.
Law enforcement agencies use the WHOIS database to support national and international
efforts including copyright protection and anti-terrorism laws. They're able to
identify the registrant - or at least the host or registrar - of every domain name
registered today. Legal infractions that can't be traced to an individual or business
can certainly be traced to a registrar. Depending on the offense, the registrar
may warn the site owner or shut down the Web site altogether.
GoDaddy.com has been active
in combating Internet crime and abuse.
GoDaddy.com lawyers have testified
before the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security
about the rapid proliferation of illegitimate pharmacies and child pornography on
the Internet. In fact, the company had a hand in the 2008 passage of the Ryan Haight
Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act, named after a California teenager who died
from an overdose of a drug he bought online.