Domain Name Security-CyberThreats Protection And Better Ranking

Thinking of buying a domain name- a new one or a used one? Well, when you think of registering a new domain or buying a used one, there are certain things that you should be aware of.

We live in a world where cyber security is so critical that it has become everyone’s responsibility. Everyone who uses the internet has to be educated on all aspects of cyber security and should be ready, at all times, to adopt preventive security measures so as to protect their websites, system, data etc from cyber threats.

Hackers today are on the prowl, seeking opportunities to unleash cyber attacks anywhere and everywhere. Among the various potential targets that they are after, domain names have an important place. They target domain names to steal data of all kinds- enterprise data and sensitive personal data of customers.

Security becomes important when we register a new domain, use a domain name that we haven’t yet secured or seek to buy a used one. Agreed that registering a new domain is rather secure, but still it’s always advisable to go for extra layers of protection. But while thinking of securing an already existing one or seeking to buy a used domain, there are certain security measures that need to be adopted. Let’s take a look at the same. Let’s also take a look at the other things to be kept in mind while obtaining a domain name.

Always make it a point to check the domain history…

Whenever you are buying a domain name, it’s always good to go check the domain history. You also need to check its previous owner; the WHOIS function helps you get the name, address and email address of the previous owner. You need to find out if there has been a history of penalties or spam. The fact is that if there is a penalty attached to a domain name, Google might find it not so easy to remove it even after you buy the domain name. Hence, a detailed look-up on the history of the domain name would always be good.

There’s another thing that needs to be checked whenever a used domain is being bought; this doesn’t have to do with security. You need to find out if the domain was earlier used for something totally unrelated to your business. If so, it’s going to be a tough task for you to attract traffic and get the site to rank well.

Choose a reputable registrar with focus on security

Whenever you think of buying a domain name, it’s always good to choose a reputable registrar with extra focus on security. That helps you ensure and add extra layers of protection to your domain. The advantage of going for such registrars is that they would even offer additional services- privacy protection, HTTPS security etc. They take care of the security of your domain in a very responsible manner and you can rest assured your domain is doubly secured.

Check if Google has previously indexed the domain name

This is more about the ranking aspect. It’s always good to check if the domain name you are going to buy has been previously indexed by Google. This would help you form an idea of how the search engine would view the domain in future too. This helps a lot in planning SEO activities and ensuring better ranking.

Make sure your WHOIS information is up to date

Whenever you buy a domain name, it’s always advisable to ensure that your WHOIS information is up to date. If you don’t keep the contact information up to date, you could have lots of issues. In extreme cases, you could even end up losing your domain name. This happens when you don’t update your contacts and the registry contacts you on the old email address and you don’t get the mail. Eventually, someone else would buy the domain and you end up losing it. So it’s wise to have a policy of updating WHOIS information as and when it changes or periodically, like say annually.