How do I change my full name as it is listed in the whois directory?

Avatar
InMotionFans
  • Answered
Hello!
I am new to this so bare with me. I've been using my security system to eliminate threats from the newly introduced, wonderful world of bots and hackers (sarcasm). I decided to look up my whois directory information for my domain name to be sure that no sensitive information is visible because I saw that one of the bots/hackers came from that page. I paid for domain privacy and most of the information on my whois is Inmotion Hosting information, which is great. However, my full name is listed on there and I absolutely do not want it to be just to be sure I am safe from hackers. How do I change the name that shows up on whois so that it is not my full name? I will happily use a fake last name, but I have no idea how to go about doing this. Thank you so much for your time and assistance. I very much appreciate it.

Best Regards,
Briana
Replies 1
Avatar
0
Scott
Hello Briana, Thank you for your question on changing the name in the WHOIS information for your domain. The field youa re referring to is the "Registrant", which is the only field you are unable to change. Unlike all other fields, the Registrant field is not supposed to change unless ownership changes. It is the name of the owner of the domain. Because of this, it is required that the name of the owner be legitimate. It can be either a person or a company name, but it must be factual. If you change the name to someone else, they are considered the owner of the domain name. Using false information here places you in the same realm as the hackers, which do the same thing. Some registrar or hosting companies will allow you to use their name as the registrant, but that means they legally own the domain name and you rely on their graces to return ownership to you if you decide to ever move the domain name. We do not do that so we can avoid any ownership issues. If you have a company name or another person who does not mind having their name on the domain, we can certainly change that for you. You will need to contact Live Support in order to have them carry out the request. If you decide to use a false name, remember that if ownership issues come up, you would not be able to prove you are that person, so proceed with caution here. Kindest Regards, Scott M