Who holds your website's keys?
Your domain, DNS, site and email each sit behind a login. This check reads the public records, then asks seven questions only you can answer.
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Step 1 · Public records
Runs in your browser against public records. Nothing reaches me unless you ask for the report below.
- Registrar
- Registered
- Renews or lapses
- Transfer lock
- DNS host
- Website host
- SPF record
- DMARC record
Owner: not shown. ICANN's rules let registrars hide the owner's name, so no public lookup can prove who owns a domain. Your answers below carry that part. Sources: ICANN Registration Data Policy and ICANN's status code guide, checked Sep 2026.
Step 2 · Keys only you can check
Answer for today. "Not sure" counts as no: a key you can't find when you need it doesn't open anything.
Hosting, builder plan or retainer. Leave blank to skip.
Keys you hold
0/7
Answer the seven questions to count your keys.
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Get your missing keys and how to get each one back
I'll send your results with the steps for your registrar, DNS host and site host, in the order that protects you fastest. One email, no drip campaign.
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How the check works
Keys held is a count: each yes is one key, from 0 to 7, and "no" or "not sure" counts as missing. One rule sits above the count: if the registrar login or the DNS login is missing, the result leads with it, because whoever holds either can point your domain elsewhere and take your site and email offline.
Days to renewal is the registry's expiry date minus today. The 3-year line is your monthly cost times 36, next to my $4,500 starting price.
The live half reads the registry's RDAP record (registrar, dates, status) and public DNS from Google, with Cloudflare as backup. A host gets a name only when its records match values the provider publishes in its own setup guides, checked Sep 2026. Anything else shows raw, marked not recognized.
The seven keys, and how to get each one back
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1. The registrar login
The company your domain is registered with. Whoever holds this login can move the domain, point it elsewhere or let it lapse. If that isn't you, ask for the domain to move into an account in your business's name, or for the transfer code so you can move it yourself.
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2. An account in your business's name
A shared login can be taken back. Put the account in your business's name, with a login email that isn't on the domain itself, so a domain problem can't lock you out of the fix.
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3. Auto-renew with a working card
A domain can lapse without anyone deciding to let it go. Turn auto-renew on, update the card and set a reminder a month before the date the check shows.
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4. The DNS login
DNS sends visitors to your site and mail to your inbox. It may sit at your registrar or elsewhere, like Cloudflare or your web host. Whoever controls it can switch off either one.
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5. The site host or builder login
Where the site itself lives: Squarespace, Wix, a WordPress host or a custom setup. Ask for your own owner or admin login, not a shared one.
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6. Owner access to your Google Business Profile
A profile can have several owners, and only owners can add or remove users. Ask whoever set yours up to invite you as an owner. Source: Google Business Profile Help, checked Sep 2026.
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7. A full copy of your content
Keep the words, photos and form settings somewhere you control, so switching builders or designers never starts from zero.
A worked example
Say the records show your domain renewing in 40 days, DNS at Cloudflare and the site on Squarespace. You answer yes to five keys and "not sure" to the registrar and DNS logins. The result: "You hold 5 of 7 keys. The 2 you're missing, the registrar login and the DNS login, are the 2 that can take your site and your email offline." At $100 a month, the 3-year line shows $3,600, less than my $4,500 starting price, so on cost alone renting wins. The missing logins are the reason to act, and getting them back starts with one polite email.
How to read your result
- All 7. You're in control. Keep auto-renew on and your login email current. Nothing to buy.
- 5 or 6, including the registrar and DNS logins. The worst case is covered. Close the rest this month.
- Registrar or DNS login missing, at any count. Fix those first, this week. Ask in writing and keep it friendly: whoever set things up may have done it to save you the hassle.
- 4 or fewer, with both logins. You hold the essentials. Work down the list above, one key a week.
Why those two come first: in May 2026, a fashion brand sued its former web developer, alleging the developer cut off its domains, back-office software and email when it switched firms. Source: Domain Name Wire, May 13, 2026, checked Sep 2026.
Questions people ask
Who owns my domain if my web designer registered it? +
Whoever the registrar lists as the registrant, which can be your designer even if you paid. If it isn't your business, ask for the domain to move into an account you control. Once it's yours, ICANN's Transfer Policy for .com and similar domains says the registrar must give you the transfer code within five calendar days of asking, if it has no self-serve option.
Can my web designer take my website down? +
Only with a key you don't hold: the registrar login, the DNS login or the site host login. This isn't about trust. It's about making sure the answer never depends on anyone but you.
What happens if my domain expires? +
If the renewal goes unpaid, your registrar can ask the registry to delete it. ICANN's status code guide says it then sits in a 30-day redemption period and is released five days later for anyone to register. Auto-renew with a working card avoids all of that.
How do I find out who my domain registrar is? +
Type your domain into the check above: it reads the registry's record and names the registrar. You can also search your inbox for a domain renewal notice.
Want every key in your name?
My full build puts the domain, code and content in your name, with no hosting fees. I take on a limited number of builds each month. Free call, and you leave with your key list either way.
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