ICANN accreditation

Being an ICANN accredited registrar means that we have the authority to register domain names for you, but only if we stick to the rules. These rules are in place to protect you, the customer.

One rule states that we have to confirm your contact details with ICANN, once per year. We do this by sending a contact validation email. There are also actions that’ll trigger the sending of a validation email.

When you receive a contact validation email, you’ll be asked to click the validation link to confirm that your details are correct. If you don’t, the rule is that we must suspend and eventually delete your domain names.

Actions that trigger the sending of a contact validation email

If you do any of the following you’ll receive a validation email…

• Register a new domain name.
• Transfer a domain name.
• Change your WHOIS registrant details.
• Fail to correct inaccurate WHOIS details.

We’ll send it to the email address you’ve entered as belonging to the original registrant. The one listed in the WHOIS directory. If you’ve started using an alternative email address, you need to let us know. If you don’t receive the validation email we won’t be able to confirm you details with ICANN and you won’t receive invoices and renewal notices, which could lead to you losing your domain names.

If you’ve updated your contact details in the WHOIS directory, the email is to confirm your changes.

What happens if you ignore or miss a validation email

Without intending to scare you, there are consequences if you fail to validate your contact details…

• Your domain name will be suspended, meaning your website will go down and you won’t be able to access your email.
• Your domain name will be removed from the DNS and become available for other people to register.
• New domain name registrations won’t be activated until you’ve validated your contact details. The EPP code in the WHOIS directory will be ‘clientHold’.
• If you make an owner change and you don’t validate the domain name, it will be parked. This means that your website will stop working.
• If we find that your WHOIS details are wrong, we’ll send you a validation email. Failure to correct and confirm your details will lead to the suspension of your domain names.

What you can do to avoid a disaster

You just need to ensure that we can contact you, it’s that simple.

• Check that your contact details are correct.
• Use an email address that’s not going to change. If you don’t want this email address public, you can activate domain privacy.
• Make sure that email we send you aren’t getting caught in your spam filter.

A large portfolio of domain names can be a daunting task, so please get in touch if you’d like some help.

How do I validate my contact details?

A validation email contains a link which you have to click. Once you’re certain your details are correct, click the link. Voilà, you’re validated, your domain names are safe! If you have any questions or you’ve received a contact validation email and you’re unsure what to do, please read our contact validation support article or get in touch with our team.

If you receive an email asking you to validate your contact details, check that the email address is from your registrar. Unfortunately there are some dodgy folk out there. At EuroDNS we’ll never ask for your username or password in an email, and we don’t charge for validating your contact details. If you’re worried about the validity of the email, please contact us.

Photo credit