- Abi Djanogly
- 5 days ago
- 7 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
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Domain protection is a security service that keeps your website address safe from unauthorized transfers while hiding your personal contact details from public databases.
When you build a website, one of the first steps is domain registration, which typically adds your name, email, and phone number to the public WHOIS directory by default.
Domain protection prevents this exposure by masking sensitive information and adding extra verification layers, helping stop bad actors from hijacking or misusing your domain.
Secure your perfect domain in just a few clicks with Wix. Get everything you need in one place: business email, reliable hosting, SSL protection and full privacy. With 24/7 support and no hidden fees, getting your site live is simple and worry-free.
TL;DR: what is domain protection?
If you’re short on time, here is the main breakdown. Domain protection safeguards your personal data and ensures no one can move or change your domain without your permission.
Feature | What it does | Why it matters |
WHOIS privacy | Replaces your personal contact info with generic registrar details in the public directory. | Stops spammers, scammers and telemarketers from finding your email and phone number. |
Domain lock | Prevents the unauthorized transfer of your domain to another registrar. | Stops "domain hijacking," ensuring you don't lose ownership of your site. |
Theft protection | Adds extra verification steps for sensitive changes. | Acts as 2-factor authentication for your website's ownership. |
What is domain protection?
At its core, domain protection is a set of security measures designed to keep your website address in your hands and your personal life private. To understand why it’s necessary, we first have to look at how the internet is organized.
When you buy a domain, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) requires domain registrars to collect your contact details. This includes your full name, physical address, email and phone number. Without protection, this information is published in the WHOIS database, which is essentially a phonebook for the internet that anyone can search.
With over 455,000 phishing domains reported in 2025, domain hijacking and impersonation remain a growing threat for website owners, reinforcing why domain protection is essential for keeping websites secure.
To address this, domain protection does two main things. First, it anonymizes that public listing. Instead of seeing your home address, a searcher sees the contact info of your domain registrar or a proxy service. Second, it places a "registry lock" on the domain. This means that even if someone guesses your password, they cannot transfer your domain to a different company without passing additional security protocols.
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Benefits of domain protection
You might be asking, "Do I need domain protection if I’m just running a small blog or portfolio?" The answer is almost always yes. The internet is automated, and scrapers don't care how big or small your business is—they just want your data.
Here are the primary reasons why this service is a smart investment:
Stops spam and unwanted solicitation
Since the WHOIS database is public, marketing bots scrape it constantly. Without protection, you open the floodgates to spam emails, robo-calls and physical junk mail. Keeping your details private cuts this noise off at the source.
Learn more: How to secure your domain
Prevents domain hijacking
Domain hijacking protection is the heavy lifting feature here. Hijacking happens when attackers gain access to your domain registration account and transfer your domain to themselves. Once they have it, getting it back is a long, expensive and often unsuccessful legal battle. Domain protection prevents this by requiring extra authentication before a transfer can occur.
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Protects your professional reputation
If a hacker steals your domain, they can replace your website with malicious content or use your URL to launch phishing attacks. This destroys the trust you’ve built with your visitors. Locking your domain ensures your audience always lands on the site you built, not a copycat.
“Certain domain registrars offer packages with added security (like WHOIS privacy protection), premium DNS services, SSL certificates or website-building tools. While these extras can increase the annual cost, they offer value in terms of convenience, security and performance. For businesses handling sensitive data or relying heavily on online transactions, these features are crucial." - Kumar Abhinav, Senior Link Building Analyst at Mavlers
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Common challenges of domain protection
While the answer to "is domain protection worth it?" is a resounding yes, there are a few hurdles you might encounter. Being aware of them helps you manage your site more effectively.
Verification emails
When you have privacy protection turned on, legitimate inquiries (like a business offer to buy your domain) might get filtered out or sent to a proxy email address you don't check often. You need to ensure you know how your registrar forwards these messages.
Learn more: How to create an email with your domain
Transferring your domain
If you decide to sell your domain or move to a different host, the security protocols you put in place will do exactly what they are supposed to do: stop the move. You will need to manually unlock the domain and disable privacy settings before a transfer can go through. This adds a few extra steps to the process.
Learn more: How to transfer your domain
Cost confusion
Some registrars bundle protection for free, while others charge a premium for it. It’s important to read the fine print when you are buying your domain so you aren't surprised by renewal fees later.
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How to get domain protection with Wix
Protecting your domain name is a crucial step in safeguarding your website, brand and online identity. Domain protection helps prevent unauthorized transfers, domain hijacking and misuse of your personal contact information. With Wix, securing your domain is straightforward and built into the domain management process.
Wix simplifies domain registration, making it quick and easy for your business to secure the perfect web address. With SSL certification and built-in domain protection, Wix ensures your domain stays safe from unauthorized transfers and potential hijacking, while keeping your personal contact information private. Whether you’re starting a blog, portfolio or online store, Wix offers a fast, secure and worry-free domain registration process so you can focus on growing your online presence.
01. Register your domain with Wix
Start by registering your domain directly through Wix. When you purchase a domain from Wix, it’s managed within a secure, centralized dashboard, reducing the risk of misconfiguration or third-party vulnerabilities. This all-in-one approach makes it easier to monitor, renew and protect your domain from day one.
02. Enable domain privacy protection
Wix automatically offers domain privacy (also known as WHOIS privacy) for eligible domains. This hides your personal contact details—such as your email address, phone number and physical address—from public WHOIS databases. Domain privacy helps reduce spam, phishing attempts and targeted social-engineering attacks that often lead to domain hijacking.
Learn more: What is domain privacy?
03. Activate domain lock
Domain lock is one of the most effective ways to prevent unauthorized domain transfers. When domain lock is enabled in your Wix account, your domain cannot be transferred to another registrar without your explicit approval. This added layer of security protects your domain even if login credentials are compromised elsewhere.
04. Use secure account access
Your domain’s security is directly tied to your Wix account. Strengthen protection by using a strong, unique password and enabling two-step verification. This ensures that only authorized users can make changes to your domain settings, DNS records or transfer permissions.
05. Keep your domain renewed and monitored
Expired domains are a common target for hijacking. Wix offers automatic renewal options and sends reminders before your domain expires, helping you maintain continuous ownership. Regularly reviewing your domain settings also allows you to spot suspicious changes early and act quickly.
You may also be interested in: dropped domains and parked domains
06. Manage everything from one dashboard
Wix gives you full visibility into your domain status, DNS records, privacy settings and renewal dates from a single dashboard. This centralized control makes it easier to manage security without needing advanced technical knowledge.
Wix combines domain registration, privacy protection, domain lock and secure account management, making domain protection straightforward and accessible—so you can focus on building and growing your website with confidence.
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What is domain protection FAQ
Is domain protection necessary for SEO?
Directly, no. Google has stated that WHOIS privacy settings do not directly impact your search ranking. However, domain protection indirectly helps by preventing spam and hijacking, which can destroy your SEO efforts overnight if your site is taken down or replaced with spammy content.
Can I add domain protection after I buy a domain?
Yes, in most cases you can add privacy and protection features to an existing domain. You will need to log into your registrar's dashboard and purchase the add-on. However, keep in mind that if your info was already public, it might have been scraped by third-party sites already, and it can take time for that data to disappear from the web.
Learn more: I have a domain name, now what?
What is the difference between SSL and domain protection?
SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) protects the connection between your website and your visitor's browser, encrypting data like credit card numbers. You know you have it when you see the padlock icon in the URL bar. Domain protection, on the other hand, protects the ownership of the web address itself. You need both to have a fully secure online presence.
Explore more: How to get an SSL certificate
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