What is RDAP?

Netistrar launches new RDAP Query System in advance of the August 2019 ICANN deadline.

Netistrar as an ICANN accredited Registrar is required to implement an RDAP service by 26th August 2019. We are pleased to announce that we have completed this development in advance of this deadline and have now made this service available for our resellers and other integrators.

What is RDAP and why should I care?

RDAP (Registrant Data Access Protocol) is a new standardised system for obtaining data about registered domain names. Designed as a replacement for the current WHOIS protocol, RDAP provides a guaranteed data format (based on industry standard JSON notation) which can be relied upon by integrating systems unlike the much looser WHOIS format which has been notoriously unreliable to access consistently.

Whilst the first phase of implementation of RDAP only concerns publicly available data which in many cases will be redacted under GDPR, the protocol has been designed for future secure authenticated access to allow straightforward access to underlying data for authenticated users where policies permit.

What data is available via the Netistrar RDAP service?

The data available via RDAP queries is broadly the same as that currently available via WHOIS. For a typical domain name you would expect to be able to read the following information from the Netistrar RDAP service.

• Registry ID for domain name.
• Statuses including locks for the domain name.
• Active nameservers.
• Registrant, Admin, Billing and Technical contact information (subject to redaction under GDPR).
• Creation and Update dates for the domain name and attached items.
• DNSSEC status.
• Registrar information including the Abuse contact

How do I access the Netistrar RDAP service?

Please visit our RDAP help page to read instructions about how to access the Netistrar RDAP service.

You can also visit our RDAP Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy pages for more information regarding this service.