Table of Contents

1. Preface
2. Introduction
3. WhoIs
4. Sample Domain Registration
5. Once you See your Domain Record

1. Preface

This document is for customers who want to check that their domain registrations are done properly. I completely rewrote it on 2010.07.29.

2. Introduction

Domain registration information is public. There is a widely available function called "WhoIs" that allows you to see all your domain registration information, such as the Administrative Contact, Technical contact, business address, and expiry date. (See a sample in the last chapter). Use this tool to verify that Bluesoft has properly registered your domain name. The thing you need to check is the "Administrative Contact" because that is ultimately the owner of the domain. If you are the admin contact, you can always get control of your domain. even without the cooperation of the current registrar or Bluesoft Internet.

3. WhoIs

Here are some websites that have "whois" functions which you can use to look up your domain information:

1. Millsoft.ca
    On the left hand panel, click on the "whois" link. (9th line down). This brings up a form that has just one field "Domain Name". Enter the domain name. The "whois" results should display the administrative contact (that is the owner of the domain), and the "Technical contact".

2. http://resellers.tucows.com. This should bring up a cluttered screen. The "whois" link is in the lower left corner, 2nd from top. Click it. This brings up a form in which you enter the domain name. Then it asks you to type in a random word that they display, to confirm you are a human. It will then display all your domain information.

3. Netsol.com
    As of 2010.07.29, the "whois" link is at the bottom of their main page under "resources". It is hard to find the link. Here is a Direct link. When you click it, a form comes up allowing you to enter the name. Enter the domain name, and you'll see full results.

4. Sample Domain Registration

Below is a sample of a "full" domain registration information for a fictional company called "XYX Company", which is owned by "Fred Smith". The official "registrar" is TUCOWS INC, one of the 10 biggest registrars. The important thing is to check the registration to make sure the Admin contact is "Fred Smith" and not some third party. Also check that the street address is correct.

Current Registrar: TUCOWS INC.  
IP Address: 64.85.35.9 (ARIN & RIPE IP search)  
Record Type: Domain Name  
Server Type: IIS 5  
Lock Status: ok  
WebSite Status: Active  
   Registrant:
 XYX Company Inc
 9999 Macdonald Street
 Vancouver, BC V5Z 1K7
 CA
 Domain name: XYZ_COMPANY.COM
 Administrative Contact:
    Smith, Fred  domains@millsoft.ca
    9999 Macdonald Street
    Vancouver, BC V5Z 1K7
    CA
    604-999-9999    Fax: 604-736-7453
 Technical Contact:
    Maurer, Bill  domains@millsoft.ca
    2403 Riverside Drive
    North Vancouver, BC V7H 1V8
    CA
    +1 (604) 929 9442
 Registration Service Provider:
    Millenia Hosting, domains@millsoft.ca
    604-789-2172
    http://millsoft.ca
    This company may be contacted for domain login/passwords,
    DNS/Nameserver changes, and general domain support questions.
 Registrar of Record: TUCOWS, INC.
 Record last updated on 06-Sep-2009.
 Record expires on 26-Sep-2010.
 Record created on 26-Sep-2000.
 Registrar Domain Name Help Center:
    http://tucowsdomains.com
 Domain servers in listed order:
    NS1.MILLSOFT.CA   
    NS2.MILLSOFT.CA   
 Domain status: ok

5. Once you See your Domain Record

Once you have accessed your domain info note the following:

1. Note that some "whois" functions don't show all the information. For example, I searched for "whois" in google, and then tested the top link, which was whois.net. However, the results did not display who was the administrative contact or tech contact.

2. False Domain Renewal Notices:
    Several of my customers have at one time or another received false renewal notices from unscrupulous domain registrars. In particular, one called "Domain Registry of Canada". What they do is send out an official looking notice and invoice to unsuspecting owners, and when you pay it, they then try to transfer the domain so that they are the registrar. To prevent this, the standard practice is to put the email address for the admin contact as something like "Domains@millsoft.ca" rather than your actual email address.