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Free WHOIS Privacy. Yay! But for how long? Boo.

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BlackCatsAreNice

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Hello all! A few registrars offer Free Whois privacy.

I am looking at NameSilo and Dynadot specifically. I am sure there are others (which ones? )

My question/concern is that I am deciding which basket I want to be placing my eggs, as Godaddy and NetSol can go to hee hee for all I care. They are the WORSE.

From what I can gather, Dynadot has a more "modern" interface than NameSilo. I am inclined to go with them but they don't specifically advertise free LIFETIME whois privacy. NameSilo on the other hand does so right on their front page.

I am weary of transferring significant amounts of domains to a registrar under the promise of premise of free whois protection only to be stung by a "change" during renewals that require paying extra to keep my whois info private.

The ole' Bait N' Switch.
 
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The views expressed on this page by users and staff are their own, not those of NamePros.
Me too!! Some unnamed registrars (GD) charge 9.99, and now i think they hve 2 tiers of privacy (upsells) least now privacy 7.99 month

Just pick registrar free whois privacy standard..
i refuse support registrar charge privacy? shud be standard, even if you claim “not to use it”

Name.com promo free whois privacy 1 yr, but saw somewhere promo code get free privacy, after expires, past 1 year..
GD I believe have pay monthly or own 500+.
It’s insane how some use privacy to upsell.

Samer
 
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If free toWhois Privacy, crucial to you?
try all the ones who include standard and make effort avoid the ones, use it hard upsell, need u be top-tier upper(own xxx-xxxx domain)

try them, go with who feel connected most

i love epik,lowest com renew for any NPer, wit free anonymize privacy.. many other features

But ofc i’m biased ;) Merry Christmas!

Samer
 
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I bring good news. Anonymize.com (an extension of Epik et al.) offers FREE privacy protection for all domains, both at Epik and at other registrars. If you think Dynadot’s service is superior to Epik’s, you can remain at Dynadot and use your Anonymize account as a proxy. Or, you can hold your names at Epik for a seamless experience, as Epik and Anonymize are well-integrated.

@Rob Monster knows more than I do on the subject.
 
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I bring good news. Anonymize.com (an extension of Epik et al.) offers FREE privacy protection for all domains, both at Epik and at other registrars. If you think Dynadot’s service is superior to Epik’s, you can remain at Dynadot and use your Anonymize account as a proxy. Or, you can hold your names at Epik for a seamless experience, as Epik and Anonymize are well-integrated.

@Rob Monster knows more than I do on the subject.

Yup, owner post here, and secure, plus they never lost one domain, and industry disruptor

im die hard epik
 
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Namesilo was one of the first, if not the first, offering free whois privacy. It is highly unlikely they'll ever discontinue it.

They talk the talk and walk the walk. One of the best registrars by far.

Dynadot is good as well though. Nothing to complain about.
 
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I can confirm that we don't currently have any plans to stop offering free WhoIs privacy, and would send advanced notice if this was to ever change in the future. WhoIs privacy is included for free with domain renewals as well as new registrations.
 
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I can confirm that we don't currently have any plans to stop offering free WhoIs privacy, and would send advanced notice if this was to ever change in the future. WhoIs privacy is included for free with domain renewals as well as new registrations.

THIS is exactly the info I needed. I don't have many domains at Dynadot but will transition away in 2020.

Sorry but the verbiage of "we don't currently have any plans" is the kind of corporate speech that leads to "change in the future" ALL THE TIME. The ole' Bait n Switch.

What customers need is a "Free Forever" wording. Like NameSilo. I will be exploring Epik as well. The Anonymize service sounds interesting.

Why would a domain investor with significant holdings place their portfolio at a registrar that promises free whois only be be hit with a "change" in subsequent years and have to cough up extra monies???

It was good while it lasted at Dynadot though. I had a positive view of them til today.
 
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THIS is exactly the info I needed. I don't have many domains at Dynadot but will transition away in 2020.

Sorry but the verbiage of "we don't currently have any plans" is the kind of corporate speech that leads to "change in the future" ALL THE TIME. The ole' Bait n Switch.

What customers need is a "Free Forever" wording. Like NameSilo. I will be exploring Epik as well. The Anonymize service sounds interesting.

Why would a domain investor with significant holdings place their portfolio at a registrar that promises free whois only be be hit with a "change" in subsequent years and have to cough up extra monies???

It was good while it lasted at Dynadot though. I had a positive view of them til today.

Why so negative? The way they worded it is to cover themselves legally. There may be future requirements set by a registry that prevents them from using privacy. Who knows what the future brings?

In my opinion, offering free whois privacy will only gain you more clients at very little cost. It's a wise and logical business decision to continue offering it at no cost. The way we're moving forward I bet it is highly unlikely they will discontinue it unless they are forced to do so by law. Even if that's the case, any registrar would need to comply so there wouldn't be a better alternative.

You should be worrying about the likes of GD who are actually charging you for privacy. DD is a stellar registrar.

Just to name another one advertising fee privacy like crazy, namecheap. Still they don't automatically renew your privacy by default. Offering that as a free add-on and not syncing the due date with the domain expiration date is insane.
 
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It's not about negativity, it's about being a WISE CONSUMER of services.

When your money is only the line, you have to weigh into decisions carefully.

If one registrar offers free whois for life and SAYS SO (i.e. NameSilo). And another offers it but is noncommittal and hedges their bet when answering the question of "Do you offer free whois for life?", then you as the CONSUMER can read into it as much as you want.

That's no being negative. That's being not foolish.
 
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It's not about negativity, it's about being a WISE CONSUMER of services.

When your money is only the line, you have to weigh into decisions carefully.

If one registrar offers free whois for life and SAYS SO (i.e. NameSilo). And another offers it but is noncommittal and hedges their bet when answering the question of "Do you offer free whois for life?", then you as the CONSUMER can read into it as much as you want.

That's no being negative. That's being not foolish.

Ok. I get that. But what Namesilo is stating is a marketing gimmick just the same. Don't get me wrong. I love them, use them a lot.

Still free privacy for life is something they are not able to promise as it's beyond their control when push comes to shove.

As a consumer I rather have a registrar making promises they can live up to than one that's throwing oneliners at me.

I don't blame them though. It has been their USP for quite some time untill some competition decided to catch up.
 
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Sure, any company can promise something and change their mind.

But we can all agree that it's HARDER to WALK BACK a statement of "free whois for life" then to say "oh it's free for now but may not be tomorrow".

I am currently vetting NameSilo as a candidate to move my domains AWAY from Dynadot. I will also look at Epik. Would probably use both as it's not wise to put all your eggs in one Instant Pot. You know, the whole KaBOOM thing.
 
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Sure, any company can promise something and change their mind.

But we can all agree that it's HARDER to WALK BACK a statement of "free whois for life" then to say "oh it's free for now but may not be tomorrow".

I am currently vetting NameSilo as a candidate to move my domains AWAY from Dynadot. I will also look at Epik. Would probably use both as it's not wise to put all your eggs in one Instant Pot. You know, the whole KaBOOM thing.

I disagree. As soon as regulations prohibit whois privacy it's actually very easy to walk away from false promises made in the past.

Never make a promise you cannot keep! Business 101.

Those who really care should look into the process of how they handle law enforcement requests of entities trying to pierce the wall of anonymity offered.

That being said, I could recommend both Epik and NS as they're stellar companies. If you like the real no BS, no upselling approach go for NS. If you're looking for a crapload of features go for Epik.
 
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Ahhh...the law. The law. The law. When the law comes, they will put you in handcuffs.

Til then, free whois for life TRUMPS(!) free whois for now.

Deal.
 
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So what happened? Is everything ok? Did Epik buy Namesilo's Dynadot privacy and then add forever registrations to it??
 
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Ahhh...the law. The law. The law. When the law comes, they will put you in handcuffs.

It's just one example. A change of CEO, you name it. After 2 decades in domaining I've seen it all.

Til then, free whois for life TRUMPS(!) free whois for now.

Effectively free for life or just for now is the same deal so I guess we agree.
 
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It's just one example. A change of CEO, you name it. After 2 decades in domaining I've seen it all.



Effectively free for life or just for now is the same deal so I guess we agree.

the beauty of this is Rob is CEO/owner.

i trust Rob word+wording more than DynaDot’s

we’re arguing over the words “free for life.”

whos only registrar fighting DN; “free for life”? instead of $8.com renewal, one time $399 Epik

Samer
 
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the beauty of this is Rob is CEO/owner.

i trust Rob word +wordin more than DynaDot’s.

Samer

When it comes to Epik, I agree. I have no doubt about his intentions. But we're not discussing Epik.

And it's not a guarantee. There's always fine print, unforseen circumstances.

Who would have thought .org would be passed on to a private equity firm? Did we (orgs, domainers, whatever) trust ICANN to look after our interest? Ofcourse we did. Look at how that turns out.

Unlimited / for life, substitute with anything alike, simply does not exist.
 
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So what happened? Is everything ok? Did Epik buy Namesilo's Dynadot privacy and then add forever registrations to it??

Nah I'm just trying to accumulate as much dislikes as possible before 2020 by giving some actually sane input.
 
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hah- sane input?? That's insane!

And no help from me re. your dislikes goal, sorry ND!

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for reals tho guys, NameDeck's giving some solid input, wouldn't hurt to consider it. And if you look a little deeper, you're actually on the same page (literally, and figuratively).

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just to add to OPs topic, whois privacy is practically a standard option now among well-respected and popular registrars, do a little research here on NP on something along the lines of "favorite" or "best" registrar and you'll find multiple polls and threads created throughout the years that may lead you to a more informed decision.

for example:

Porkbun
Epik
Namesilo
Dynadot
Hover
Uniregistry

are a few that DO offer free whois.
 
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And if you look a little deeper, you're actually on the same page (literally, and figuratively).

Potayto potahto. Huge difference ;) But serious, you're right.
 
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