Calling all domain hosters/webmasters..

[Meractik]

I currently host my domain with 1and1 and it hasn't been an issue but for the first time ever I received a phone call today from someone claiming they worked @ 1and1 hosting and wanted to discuss marketing and web design features with me, the call was quickly dismissed when I told them that my site is not a huge website associated with a business or any of the sort that I simply utilize the domain for e-mail purposes yet part of me felt a little violated that I was even solicited for this type of telephone call.

Is there a way to hide my personal information that my domain is registered with so that outside entities cannot simply gain my contact information and reach out to me?

 

[DesiPower]

Most hosts have something like "private domain registration", you can call and ask...

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

1and1 has a bad track record.
http://www.webhostingreviews.com/1and1-reviews.htm

To hide your personal info, you have to pay extra for WhoisGuard. I think namecheap sometimes offers it for free for a year with some of their promos. Don't think i've seen that with godaddy.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I've heard bad things about 1and1. They are one of many "oversold" hosts. Basically they put more people on a server and give more resources than what the server can actually handle. Sometimes they don't even have enough disk space to back up their disk space quotas!

As for hiding your info you can get whois privacy, but to me the cheapest thing is to get a PO box to hide your address (also acts as a place to store offsite backups) and get a free phone number such as from Evoice (probably lot of other companies) and change it to that. That way you don't have to put your home phone. If it's just one domain whois privacy is the simplest route though. But the PO box way you save if you have lot of domains. Your real name will show though, but it's the phone number and address that are more important to hide.

 

[ViviTheMage]

If it was 1and1, and you have a legit number on file, that could be what they called ... if you check your WHOIS, it will also tell you what information is public about your domain.

 

[Meractik]

thanks for the info every1.