- Check privacy eligibility and the minimum initial term for the extension.
- Keep yourself or your authorised organisation as the registered holder.
- Verify the public lookup after every registration, transfer or contact update.
What a public RDAP lookup can show
RDAP is the primary way to retrieve registration data for generic extensions such as .com. Public records can show the registrar, registration dates, domain status and nameservers even when personal contact fields are redacted.
Open the public ICANN Lookup result for a generic extension and inspect the registrant fields. For a country-code extension, use the registry's own lookup if the ICANN service cannot return the record. Visibility for a particular field, including a country or region, varies.
Where the registered holder appears
Redaction removes or masks fields in public results. A privacy service may display alternative public contact details while you remain the registered holder. A proxy arrangement can list the proxy as the registered holder. Read the registrar's terms and check who holds the domain in the account before enabling a service.
Maintain a working account recovery method. Keep the registrar's confirmation and the details you provided in your own records. A public result with redacted fields does not show who can approve a transfer from the account.
Check renewal cost as well as privacy
Compare the first checkout total against the annual renewal price. Some extensions require more than one year at registration. Premium names can have different prices, so use the table for standard names and confirm the quote for the name you choose.
After registration, verify the public contact fields and nameservers. Repeat the lookup after a provider change. If a field is public and you expected it to be private, check the policy for the extension and contact the registrar about the specific field.