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PALM BEACH, FL – The public face of domain ownership is disappearing – and GoDaddy’s latest announcement is just the latest proof. In an email sent to resellers today, GoDaddy announced it will no longer collect or display Administrative, Billing, or Technical contact details for most domains. The move, effective August 21, 2025, is part of a broader alignment with ICANN’s evolving Registration Data Policy (RDP) and reflects a clear trend in the domain industry: WHOIS records are getting leaner, more private, and harder to use for outreach.
Post-GDPR: The Shrinking of WHOIS
The trend began in earnest after the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) took effect in 2018. Almost overnight, major registrars like GoDaddy and Namecheap began redacting personal contact data from WHOIS records to avoid running afoul of European privacy law. What was once a relatively open directory of domain ownership has since transformed into a cloaked, minimal disclosure environment.
Now, GoDaddy is taking the next step: deleting “extra” contact data and removing even more fields (like Organization Name) from WHOIS/RDDS output, unless customers manually opt in to publish them.
What’s Changing – Effective Aug 21, 2025:
- WHOIS will only display Registrant contact info, and only the minimum required.
- Admin, Tech, and Billing contacts will no longer be collected or shown.
- The Organization field in WHOIS will be hidden unless the user changes their privacy settings to allow it.
- Fax numbers and other legacy fields will be deleted unless required by the registry.
Why This Matters
While the change enhances privacy and aligns with industry policy, it also further limits transparency. For those in the domain aftermarket, cybersecurity, or brand enforcement, reduced WHOIS data complicates due diligence, negotiations, and investigations.
The days of typing in a domain and immediately seeing a name, email, and phone number are long gone. What’s emerging is a model more in line with RDAP (Registration Data Access Protocol) – a more structured, query-based system that favors regulated access over public transparency.
Not Just GoDaddy
GoDaddy isn’t alone. Other registrars – including Namecheap, Tucows, and even Google Domains (before its shutdown) – already transitioned to redacted WHOIS or RDAP-based systems. ICANN’s own policies, like the WHOIS Sunset slated for early 2025, signal the industry-wide pivot away from legacy WHOIS altogether.
What’s Next?
Domain investors, brokers, and brand protection firms may need to increasingly rely on:
- Broker services or contact forms provided by registrars.
- Authenticated RDAP queries (once access frameworks are fully built out).
- Third-party escrow and verification services for domain transactions.
While GoDaddy’s policy change may seem small in isolation, it’s part of a decade-long progression toward a more private and permissioned internet. Whether that’s good or bad depends on your role in the ecosystem – but one thing is certain: WHOIS, as we once knew it, is vanishing.
About The Author: John Colascione is Chief Executive Officer of Internet Marketing Services Inc. He specializes in Website Monetization, is a Google AdWords Certified Professional, authored a ‘how to’ book called ”Mastering Your Website‘, and is a key player in several Internet related businesses through his search engine strategy brand Searchen Networks®
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