Chose your color

Frequently visited

Frequently asked questions

  • I am looking for a domain name registrant. Where can I look it up?

    The Whois is an easy-to-use tool for checking the availability of a .nl domain name. If the domain name is already taken, you can see who has registered it.

    On the page looking up a domain name you will find more information about what a domain name is, how the Whois works and how the privacy of personal data is protected. Alternatively, you can go straight to look for a domain name via the Whois.

  • I would like to transfer my domain name to another registrar. What is the procedure?

    To get your domain name transferred, you need the token (unique ID number) for your domain name. Your existing registrar has the token and is obliged to give it to you within five days, if you ask for it. The procedure for changing your registrar is described on the page transferring your domain name.

  • The details registered about me/my company are incorrect or out of date. How can I get them updated?

    To update the contact details associated with your domain name, you need to contact your registrar. Read more about updating contact details.

  • Why is my domain name in quarantine?

    When a domain name is cancelled, we aren't told the reason, so we can't tell you. You'll need to ask your registrar. The advantage of quarantine is that, if a name's cancelled by mistake, you can always get it back.

    One common reason is that the contract between you and your registrar says you've got to renew the registration every year. If you haven't set up automatic renewal and you don't renew manually, the registration will expire.

  • Ik heb een klacht over mijn provider/registrar. Kan ik daarvoor bij SIDN terecht?

    Wanneer je een klacht hebt over of een geschil met je registrar dan zijn er verschillende mogelijkheden om tot een oplossing te komen. Hierover lees je meer op pagina klacht over registrar. SIDN heeft geen formele klachtenprocedure voor het behandelen van een klacht over jouw registrar.

  • What conditions do I have to meet as a registrar?

    Would you like to be able to register domain names for customers or for your own organisation by dealing directly with SIDN? If so, you can become a .nl registrar. Read more about the conditions and how to apply for registrar status on the page becoming a registrar.

More frequently asked questions

Before you can adopt a standard, you need to know whether you comply with it

Internet.nl promotes the adoption of internet standards

  • Monday 25 March 2019

We believe that the adoption of internet standards is very important. We've therefore been affiliated to the Platform for Internet Standards -- the organisation behind internet.nl -- from the word 'go'. Platform Chair Gerben Klein Baltink talks about a valuable partnership.

How it all began

Gerben Klein Baltink, chair of Platform for Internet Standards
internet.nl

In 2014, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Forum for Standardisation held a meeting with representatives of the Dutch internet community. The reason: numerous standards were being developed to improve the internet and make it more secure, but their adoption was often very slow. Gerben Klein Baltink was one of the people at the meeting. "Our perception was that it wasn't so much the technical people within organisations who were reluctant to adopt the new standards as the management. Managers often have little insight into the benefits, and see only the cost." The group therefore decided that the best strategy was to reach out to company managers.

Reaching the decision-makers

On the back of that decision, the Platform for Internet Standards was established, and Klein Baltink was invited to chair it. "Everyone involved is very committed. All of them come from the non-profit sector. It was deliberately set up that way, because we want to be independent and avoid any hint of conflicted interests. Having many different constituencies within the internet community working together on the Platform is a very positive aspect. People from abroad often compliment us on the way we do that in the Netherlands."

Marco Davids
Marco Davids, Research Engineer at SIDN Labs

Why standards are important

SIDN's involvement in the Platform's promotion of new internet standards is entirely consistent with its role, according to Marco Davids, Research Engineer at SIDN Labs: "Standards are essential to the internet. They create a level playing field, opening the way for market participation by smaller players. First and foremost, however, they support security. Security standards protect against spam, phishing and other forms of abuse. So, by backing the adoption of standards, we're fulfilling our mission, which is to promote safe and convenient digital living for everyone. It's in line with activities such as encouraging the use of DNSSEC, StartTLS, DMARC and IPv6 via the Registrar Scorecard, supporting open-source initiatives, and SIDN Labs' involvement in the development of new standards through the IETF."

internet.nl

Platform members meet several times a year, and soon had the idea of creating the website internet.nl. It's a simple concept: a utility where you enter a URL and are immediately told what internet standards the relevant site supports. You can do the same with an e-mail address, and you can check the security of your local connection as well. The website was launched in 2015 at the Global Cyber Security Conference in The Hague. It was subsequently publicised at numerous gatherings and congresses, and quickly started bearing fruit. "The rise in the implementation of standards was steeper that we had dared to hope," recalls Klein Baltink. "The numbers shot up, not just a few percent." Despite its success, Klein Baltink doesn't expect the site to become redundant any time soon. "Crooks are constantly coming up with new ways to get around security measures," he says. "Internet standards have to keep evolving in response. So there'll always be a need for an independent test environment like internet.nl."

Constant development

The Platform for Internet Standards holds a number of meetings each year. New standards are often added to the website, and existing ones get updated. Changes don't happen overnight, though. A member makes a proposal, which is then discussed at an expert session. Platform members also look into the background to sluggish adoption of the relevant standard. Is it difficult to implement? Is it expensive? The conclusions are reflected in the way that the standard is ultimately added to the site.

Innovation

Around the world, countless tools are available for checking whether a website meets certain security standards. However, there are not many sites like internet.nl. Recently, therefore, the Platform for Internet Standards decided to make the software behind internet.nl open source. So people in other countries can create similar sites of their own. Meanwhile, the Platform is constantly looking to add new features to the Dutch site. Soon, for example, internet.nl will enable visitors to compare multiple websites. That'll be useful to site administrators, who want to know how their site shapes up against others. With its added functionality, internet.nl will serve as a full-featured test centre.

Related articles