GoDaddy’s form doesn’t allow the submitter to enter their own text, and ICANN says this is acceptable.
ICANN published an advisory this week about the requirement that registrars provide a way to contact registrants.
The Registration Data Policy that went into effect in August 2025 requires registrars to collect and publish an email address for the registrant and, where applicable, the technical contact.
Because registrars don’t want to disclose registrant email addresses for privacy reasons, they usually handle this requirement in one of two ways.
One is to provide an anonymized email address that forwards to the registrant. The other is to provide a web form.
ICANN noted that one unnamed registrar provides a “web form that allows the user to select from a list of pre-populated reasons for the request to contact, which is then forwarded to the relevant contact with the user’s email address.”
Some have questioned if this pre-populated form “facilitates email communication” between the user of a web form and the relevant contact, since the submitter can’t include a message other than selecting a pre-populated reason.
The registrar isn’t named, but it’s clearly GoDaddy. GoDaddy’s form provides three options:
- Domain name or content is being used in malware, or for spam or abuse
- Domain name or content is infringing on a trademark or violating local laws or regulations
- Research or other purpose
It’s up to the registrant to decide whether to reply based on the selection.
ICANN said this does meet the requirement.
Interestingly, GoDaddy’s form does not require the submitter to verify their email address, so anyone can fill out the form pretending to be someone else.
Many domain investors have asked that an option be added to indicate that the contact is an inquiry to buy the domain.
If one were just a tiny bit cynical, one might assume this is because the mighty GoDaddy wants potential buyers to make contact through their brokers, mightn’t one?…
It’s a fair point. I believe it was Paul Nicks who said some customers were confused when people clicked the ‘interested in buying’ link in the past, and were getting tricked, so that’s why they changed it. Someone correct me if my memory is incorrect.
That does sound right. But I’ll bet those weren’t the only type of confused enquiries they were getting. And the change does seem rather self-serving methinks.
Definitely. They’re an intermediary after all.
Dynadot uses the same system without a text field.
It’s quite amusing to receive an email from a GoDaddy broker for “research or general inquiry”.