Posts Tagged: "EPAG Domainservices GmbH"

Trademark Enforcement Implications of Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

The WHOIS database provides technical information about the date of creation and expiration of a domain, as well as contact information for the registrant of a website, including name, physical address, email address, and phone numbers. GoDaddy and WHOIS.com appear to have selectively redacted the information only for registrants providing an EU contact address. However, given the difficultly of determining which domain owners are EU citizens, many registrars, such as Tucows, removed data for all domains regardless of where the registrant is located. In light of this WHOIS blackout, the GDPR has effectively made it easier for counterfeiters and infringers to evade detection.