Registration data helps you ask precise questions about a domain, but it does not replace checking the terms of sale. CHECK THE EXACT NAME Copy the domain from its full listing, verify the extension and open ICANN Lookup yourself. Searching only for a brand name is insufficient: the same word in different extensions identifies different domains. Save the date and source address. WHY RDAP ICANN designated RDAP as the definitive source of gTLD registration information from 28 January 2025, replacing WHOIS. This concerns generic top-level domains; do not automatically apply that conclusion to every country-code extension. COLLECT QUESTIONS, NOT ASSUMPTIONS Record the displayed registrar, statuses and dates with their labels. Do not interpret every date as a guaranteed release date. Ask the registrar to explain unclear values before agreeing a transfer. A missing public registrant name is not itself evidence of wrongdoing: some information may not be publicly returned. COMPARE WITH THE TRANSACTION Separately establish who transfers the domain, how their authority is checked and what happens after payment. A public record is not a contract and does not independently establish the seller's rights. Do not publish private documents to make this comparison. Return to the catalogue and open the complete pages of your candidates. Keep a short list of unresolved questions for each: it is more useful than a rushed conclusion based on a single field. Image: a new AI photoillustration for this article; a conceptual scene, not a documentary photograph. Domain catalogue: https://domainevery.com/en/domains Primary sources: https://lookup.icann.org/en/faq https://www.icann.org/en/announcements/details/icann-update-launching-rdap-sunsetting-whois-27-01-2025-en
