SIDN and privacy

Why is information about you visible in the Whois?

Around the world, people expect to be able to look up details of a registered domain name. We allow the look-up of very limited information about .nl domain names. If the registrant is a person, the only information about that person given in the Whois is the administrative contacts e-mail address. If the registrant is a business, the name is provided as well, and the registrant has the option of giving an address. Giving those basic details enables people to get in touch if there's a technical problem. And, occasionally, the police or another body needs to know who the registrant is.

You can ask to opt out of sharing info about yourself

Do you have a special reason for not wanting the Whois to show even the small amount of info about you that would normally be available? (That's your e-mail address and, if you are a business registrant, your name.) If so, you can ask to opt out of sharing your personal details. The situations in which you're allowed to opt out and the procedure for opting out are described on the Opt-out request page.

Full contact details

In the Whois, you can look up certain details about a registered .nl domain name, including the e-mail address of the administrative contact person for the registrant. We also keep a few other pieces of information, which aren't visible in the Whois:

• The registrant's name (not in the Whois if the registrant is a person)
• The registrant's address
• The name and phone number of the administrative contact for the domain name
• The name and phone number of the technical contact for the domain name

What if you need to contact a registrant?

We suggest you try the following:

• See whether the domain name is linked to a website with a contact page.
• Try contacting the registrant using the administrative contact's e-mail address or the technical contact's e-mail address, both of which are in the Whois.
• If the registrant is a business, get the name from the Whois. You can then google the name or look it up in the Trade Register.
• Try contacting the registrant through the registrar, whose details are in the Whois. Every domain name is managed by a registrar (hosting service provider).

Occasionally, we do share a registrant's details

We share details only where there's a good reason. That comes down to sharing with the following:

1. People with a legitimate interest ('interested parties')

   If you want us to give you a registrant's full contact details, you need to explain to us why you need them. We will then see whether your request satisfies the criteria in the Whois Conditions of Use.

   To request details about a .nl registrant, you need to use the request form for contact details.

2. Investigative and enforcement authorities

   The police and others with similar powers can require us to give them full details of a registration.

   Automated data access for investigative and enforcement authorities

   The police and others with similar powers can make arrangements with us to look up personal data automatically. That saves us and them a lot of trouble. Naturally, the authorities are allowed to use their special access only as permitted by the law. We have arrangements with the following:
   

   • Consumer Authorithy
   • Dutch Healthcare Authority
   • Dutch Media Authority
   • Financial Markets Authority
   • Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority
   • Gaming Authority
   • Health Care Inspectorate
   • Internet Fraud Support Centre
   • Municipality of Apeldoorn (social security fraud investigation unit)
   • Municipality of Helmond (social security fraud investigation unit)
   • Municipality of Hengelo (social security fraud investigation unit)
   • Municipality of Nijmegen (social security fraud investigation unit)
   • Municipality of Wijchen (social security fraud investigation unit)
   • National Cyber Security Centre(NCSC)
   • Radiocommunications Agency
   • Tax and Customs Administration
     
     Do you represent an investigative or enforcement authority with an interest in automated data access? You can request access using the agreement form Use of the Non-public Whois.
     

3. Certification Authorities (CAs)

   CAs are companies that issue digital certificates to domain name registrants. Before issuing a certificate, a CA has to check whether the details match the data held by the registry. Because it is the registrant that wants the certificate, we cooperate with the CA.

   Automated access for CAs

   CAs can also make arrangements with us to look up personal data automatically. Naturally, CAs are allowed to use their special access only to get data on the registrant's behalf. We currently have arrangements with the following CAs:

   • Comodo CA Ltd
   • Digicert
   • Digidentity BV
   • Global Sign NV Ubicenter
   • GoDaddy
   • KPN Corporate Market BV
   • QuoVadis Trustlink

Do you represent a CA with an interest in automated data access? You can request access using the agreement form Use of the Certification Authorities' Whois.