Data protection and security are hot topics these days. Quite understandably, people want to know whether and to what extent their personal data is being collected, used and shared. As a global domain Registry with over two million domain names under management, it is our responsibility and top priority to safeguard the personal data of our domain registrants.
Currently, when you register a .CO domain name, your Domain Name Provider collects certain information, including your name, address, contact information, and the IP address of the servers on which your domain name is hosted. As a Registry Operator, we collect this information from providers, and make it publically available online in the WHOIS database. We use this information to comply with legal regulations, enforce policies and respond to abuse complaints, among other things.
Although WHOIS Information is publicly available on the Internet, we prohibit the following uses:
- Transmission of mass unsolicited, commercial advertising or solicitations via direct mail, electronic mail, or by telephone
- Any use in direct violation of applicable data and privacy protection laws;
- High volume, automated, electronic processes that interact with domain name registry systems.
In recent months, the .CO Registry began a comprehensive review of international processes to safeguard your personal data and protect your privacy online. As of May 25, 2018, the .CO Registry has implemented via its public WHOIS website an initial set of data for public access which supports its current policies on a free and public WHOIS database while providing you, our registrants and customers, an additional layer of protection of your personal data. Legitimate inquiries will still be afforded the full WHOIS data upon submitting a formal request to the Registrar Provider, as listed in the WHOIS, and agreeing to Terms & Conditions verifying that the data will be used for valid purposes.
We believe these implementations are a great benefit for the global Internet community and will help to prevent .CO registrants from being spammed or scammed. It also prevents people from scraping the .CO Registry database for bulk searches and harvesting personal data for illicit direct marketing and other purposes. We continue to be dedicated to preserving the integrity of our namespace and .CO has, and will continue to have, a strong position on the Personal Protection of Data of our global Registrants.
Thank you for being a part of our .CO global community.
If you have any questions or concerns, please send us a message at [email protected].
