UK Domain suspended for not providing real information KYC, recommended no kyc registrars?

I been buying domains since 2010 and only a couple of times has this happened which have been related to UK domains.

I thought maybe it wouldn't happen this time even though it was a uk domain but it has and now it is suspended but I was informed that the registrar I used (netim - first time I tried) ask for KYC on all new domains no matter of tld, after 1 month of having bought the domain.

I would not have used them if I knew that beforehand.

I am not doing any BH stuff, it is a WH site, but I value my privacy and don't trust private whois as I have read of leaks in the past so don't want to give my real info to be put online somewhere with the risk of it leaking or being doxxed.

So the domain has now been suspended. What happens to it now? Can I request to get it transfered elsewhere which won't ask this KYC stuff?

Since it is a UK tld though I think I might face the same issues later down the line as I was told that uk is bad for kyc in general and that has also been my experience in the past with the few uk tlds I have bought sparingly over many years.

I really didn't give it much thought at the time of purchase. As this is a new project I am not bothered about just buying another domain, with none uk tld if it will avoid further problems like this.

I do not recall any issues with .com domains I bought over the years except just one case with a crackdown at internetbs but that was only to provide a real email address if I recall correctly, not full KYC. Internetbs are my main guys over the years for being chill but I wanted to try a different registrar since this is some new WH site so preferred to keep it away from my internetbs domains which are 'grey'.

Are there other chill registrars that don't have KYC bs you can recommend to avoid such issues?

If the domain is only suspended because you didn't complete KYC, I'd check whether the registrar will still allow an outbound transfer before making any decisions. Many registrars lock transfers while a domain is suspended, so you may have to resolve the verification first.

As for avoiding KYC altogether, that's becoming much harder. More registrars are asking for identity verification as part of their fraud prevention policies, especially for new accounts or certain TLDs like .uk. Even registrars that don't ask initially can request it later if something triggers a review.

If privacy is your main concern, I'd stick with a reputable registrar that has a good track record on data protection rather than looking for one that never asks for KYC. Those "no KYC" options tend to change their policies over time anyway.

If privacy is your main concern, register your domains under a company rather than your personal details.

The registrar may still require human KYC at some point, but that doesn't necessarily have to be you. Write a 'domain management authorization' letter on corporate letterhead, have that person upload their ID, and that should be enough.

It won't make you untouchable if there's legal action, but the corporate barrier means the personal details attached to the account are for your "IT manager", not you personally.

Namecheap and Porkbun are generally laidback for .com domains with minimal KYC reqs. Nominet registry behind .uk domains has stricter verification reqs baked in at the registry level so it’s not just a registrar issue.

Stavro said:

If privacy is your main concern, register your domains under a company rather than your personal details.

The registrar may still require human KYC at some point, but that doesn't necessarily have to be you. Write a 'domain management authorization' letter on corporate letterhead, have that person upload their ID, and that should be enough.

It won't make you untouchable if there's legal action, but the corporate barrier means the personal details attached to the account are for your "IT manager", not you personally.

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Yes I got recommendations elsewhere to setup an LLC in Wyoming - not sure why Wyoming specifically, or some US state, (and I am in the UK so not sure if that is even applicable to me)? but this seems a rather convoluted process for something that isn't imperative.

Or is what you are suggesting not that, but just simply putting a business name as the details rather than personal ones? Still you would need a physical address right which probably requires verifying at some stage, somehow either at the registrar or when setting up a business with some kind of official body? If so that seems to just kick the can (issue) down the road.

I mean I don't NEED privacy THAT bad. I am not doing bad stuff. These will be white hat sites for new projects. I just don't feel comfortable about uploading my real name and address to somewhere which could potentially be accessible on the open internet - if there were leaks or whatnot.

I am sure millions of people buying domains are following KYC guidelines and uploading this data as requested so mine would just be a drop in the ocean, so perhaps it is much ado about nothing, but still that has been my initial inclination - if it is not too much trouble then why not just omit that if I can? the 'not too much trouble' being the operative phrase.

slopppyfart said:

I mean I don't NEED privacy THAT bad. I am not doing bad stuff. These will be white hat sites for new projects. I just don't feel comfortable about uploading my real name and address to somewhere which could potentially be accessible on the open internet - if there were leaks or whatnot.

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If there's ever a WHOIS leak of millions of websites, a random whitehat domain is probably going to be the least of anyone's concerns.

If you absolutely need privacy, a legitimately registered Wyoming LLC is probably the easiest solution. A leak would point to some random business address in Wyoming shared by thousands of other companies, not your name and home address. A UK limited company might be slightly easier, but UK public records show directors and owners by name, Wyoming doesn't publicly list LLC members at all.

And no, I'm not suggesting you enter someone else's business information. That's even more likely to get your domains suspended or taken away.

Stavro said:

If there's ever a WHOIS leak of millions of websites, a random whitehat domain is probably going to be the least of anyone's concerns.

If you absolutely need privacy, a legitimately registered Wyoming LLC is probably the easiest solution. A leak would point to some random business address in Wyoming shared by thousands of other companies, not your name and home address. A UK limited company might be slightly easier, but UK public records show directors and owners by name, Wyoming doesn't publicly list LLC members at all.

And no, I'm not suggesting you enter someone else's business information. That's even more likely to get your domains suspended or taken away.

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How involved of a process is setting up a company in Wyoming and what sort of costs involved? I imagine it won't be free? I see there are lots of articles online for this but in the description on one I read 'administrative costs'. As I said I don't care enough to pay for this.

An alternative I had thought is to just do KYC but do it with a reputable looking UK company who I would imagine have to follow more strict rules for data protection than some offshore place in a far off land.

slopppyfart said:

How involved of a process is setting up a company in Wyoming and what sort of costs involved? I imagine it won't be free?

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It's about $100 to file, $25ish a year for a registered agent, and a $60 annual fee to the state, so under $100 a year after the first year.

Since it's just holding domains with little to no activity, the only regular US paperwork should be the short Wyoming annual report and two mostly blank forms to the IRS.

slopppyfart said:

An alternative I had thought is to just do KYC but do it with a reputable looking UK company who I would imagine have to follow more strict rules for data protection than some offshore place in a far off land.

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Both options adhere to roughly the same privacy standards for all intents and purposes. The Wyoming route would protect you from third-party WHOIS leaks like Google's, but those sorts of leaks are already rare and limited, so simple KYC is probably sufficient if you're not expecting any legal action.

Stavro said:

Both options adhere to roughly the same privacy standards for all intents and purposes. The Wyoming route would protect you from third-party WHOIS leaks like Google's, but those sorts of leaks are already rare and limited, so simple KYC is probably sufficient if you're not expecting any legal action.

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Useful info.

Ok then the latter makes more sense and won't have to pay!

Stavro said:

It's about $100 to file, $25ish a year for a registered agent, and a $60 annual fee to the state, so under $100 a year after the first year.

Since it's just holding domains with little to no activity, the only regular US paperwork should be the short Wyoming annual report and two mostly blank forms to the IRS.

Both options adhere to roughly the same privacy standards for all intents and purposes. The Wyoming route would protect you from third-party WHOIS leaks like Google's, but those sorts of leaks are already rare and limited, so simple KYC is probably sufficient if you're not expecting any legal action.

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I emailed netim asking how I can move the domain and they seem to be holding it ransom stating that I must validate the details before I move it.

So they can just keep it for how long? the whole year until it would be released at the end of the year I paid for?

I will just abandon that domain if so.