WHOIS privacy

WHOIS privacy is a service offered by domain registrars where, instead of publishing your real identity in public WHOIS, the registrar publishes a proxy contact (typically the registrar's address and a forwarding email). Inquiries to the proxy email are forwarded to the customer; legal process to the registrar's address is handled by the registrar. Most modern registrars (Cloudflare Registrar, Porkbun, Namecheap) offer free WHOIS privacy as a default.

WHOIS privacy is necessary but not sufficient for full anonymity. The registrar still knows your real identity (and can be compelled to disclose it via court order). For stronger anonymity, use an identity-wrapped registrar like Njalla, which legally owns the domain on your behalf — Njalla appears in WHOIS as the actual registrant, and you have a contractual right to control the domain.