ICANN has changed the address of its website which hosts the query tool for domain registrant data. This tool is widely known as Whois, a name not only familiar because of many years of use, but also because it is self-explanatory, doing exactly what it says. However, users will obviously have to be weaned off the former name. Whois rules require the disclosure of part of the registrant’s personal data and therefore contradicts the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which has entered into force in the EU.
The alternative is the Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP), approved by the Internet Engineering Council. ICANN's interim policy, introduced because of the conflict between Whois and GDPR, stipulates that by August 26, all ICANN-contracted registries and registrars must deploy the new RDAP services – if not replace their existing Whois services, then at least in parallel with them. ICANN itself decided to set an example, abandoning the use of the term Whois. Previously, the corporation’s website for searching registrant records was found at whois.icann.org. According to Domain Incite, the address has been changed to lookup.icann.org. As lookup means “search” or “inquiry,” in this sense, the new name, although not as implicit the former whois, is still suggestive – unlike the acronym RDAP. Unfortunately, the service itself is not as informative, only providing reference data on registries and registrars.
