[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":35},["ShallowReactive",2],{"$f2uvGs1eosXA7i0mISOO4wUCpbyLj-zEd2EbhAh5cN94":3},{"id":4,"slug":5,"url":6,"date":7,"modified":8,"title":9,"excerpt":10,"content":11,"featuredImage":12,"featuredImageAlt":13,"tags":14,"categories":30},617,"do-you-own-your-domain-name","https://blog.grizzlyware.com/do-you-own-your-domain-name/","2026-10-29T10:42:54","2026-10-29T10:42:57","Do you own your domain name?","\u003Cp>Your domain name is the online equivalent of your address – but many small businesses don’t know who it’s registered to, or whose card pays for it. Here’s how to check, for free.\u003C/p>\n","\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cem>Part 5 of 5 in our October series: small, free steps to take control of your own cyber security.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Your domain name is the online equivalent of your address. It’s the ‘yourbusiness.co.uk’ part of your website and email address that allows your customers to find and contact you online. It’s one of your smallest business costs, and one of the easiest to forget about.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Depending on your plan, it’ll renew either once a year or every few years – and in between, you’re unlikely to think about it at all. But if it lapses or ends up in the wrong hands, your website and email will both stop working at the same time.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">It’s not just small businesses\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even large companies have been caught out by expired domains. In July 2017, marketing software company Marketo forgot to renew its main domain, which took its website down and stopped its customers logging in to its platform and using its tools.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In Marketo’s case, it was a lucky escape – the domain was in grace period, giving them time to renew it before someone else could re-register it. If no one had noticed in time, it could have been very difficult to get back.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Marketo’s CEO had to apologise publicly, and the outage has since been widely used as an example of how something as small as a renewal can become a costly mistake. And if a team the size of Marketo’s can miss it, it’s not surprising that small businesses do too.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How small businesses lose track\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In our experience, it’s rarely carelessness that causes a domain to expire. More often than not, business owners aren’t even aware it’s something they’re responsible for. In a lot of cases, the domain was set up years ago by someone who’s no longer around:\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003Cli>A web designer or agency you no longer work with\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>A relative or friend who built the website\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>A former employee\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sometimes, the domain is even registered in their own name, on their own account, so renewal reminders never reach you. Or they set up auto-renewal, but paid with a personal card that has since expired. Usually, the first time you realise this is when your site goes down and you’re left trying to find contact details for the person who set it up.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What’s at stake\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When a domain expires, the website and email linked to it usually stop working immediately. Customers visiting your site will see an error, and emails sent to you will bounce back. There’s often a grace period after expiry when the domain can be recovered – sometimes for an additional fee – but not always.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If the domain isn’t renewed in time, it’s released and anybody can register it. Not only does this mean a bad experience for customers trying to reach you, but the domain could also be used against you – by competitors, who may redirect it to their own site; by people who try to sell it back to you at a highly inflated price; or, more sinisterly, by people posing as your business to obtain customer details.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There’s also the question of ownership. Whoever the domain is registered to is, in effect, its owner. If that’s your old web designer or a disgruntled former employee, getting it back depends on being able to contact them, and on their goodwill.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What you can do\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even if you have a web developer, it’s important to know the following, to keep your business safe and you in control. Finding this out costs nothing, but knowing it could be worth a lot.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Col class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Who is the domain registered to?\u003C/strong> It should be your business – not a supplier or an individual.\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Who can log in to the account?\u003C/strong> Make sure the relevant people in your business have access – not just one person.\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Whose card is on the account?\u003C/strong> Check it’s a business card, and that it doesn’t expire before your next renewal.\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>When does it expire, and is auto-renew turned on?\u003C/strong> Make sure auto-renew is turned on, then set a reminder in your calendar to check the card is still valid a month before the renewal date.\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Where do renewal reminders go?\u003C/strong> Ideally a shared address (or several addresses) that’s checked often and, if possible, one that doesn’t use the domain itself – as that will stop working if the domain lapses.\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ol>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you aren’t sure where to start, ask whoever looks after your website and email, or your hosting company.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you discover that somebody else holds the domain, don’t panic – simply ask them to transfer it to your business. As long as you have a good relationship with them, it should usually be a straightforward task.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">That’s a wrap\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This article is the final instalment in our five-part October series on quick, free ways you can improve cyber security for your small business. Over five weeks, we’ve looked at\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog/cyber-security-for-small-businesses-nine-things-that-cost-nothing\"> nine free security basics\u003C/a>,\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog/online-shop-plugins-weakest-link\"> clearing out unused plugins\u003C/a>,\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog/asos-hack-fake-trusted-contact\"> spotting a fake ‘trusted contact’\u003C/a>,\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog/php2shell-what-happened-and-why-keeping-your-website-up-to-date-is-essential\"> keeping your website up to date\u003C/a>, and now, making sure you own your domain name. You can find all five articles in the series in our\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog?category=security\"> Security section\u003C/a>.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Need a hand?\u003C/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you’d like us to check where your domain stands, or anything else from this series, call us on 01637 222001 or\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/contact-us\"> get in touch\u003C/a>, and we’ll tell you honestly what, if anything, needs doing.\u003C/p>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u003Cstrong>Sources\u003C/strong>\u003C/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003Cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https://www.itnews.com.au/news/marketo-suffers-major-outage-after-domain-renewal-fail-469460\">iTnews: Marketo suffers major outage after domain renewal fail\u003C/a>\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/07/25/marketos-own-marketing-team-feels-the-heat-after-company-forgets-re-register-its\">The Drum: Marketo’s marketing team feels the heat after company forgets to re-register its domain\u003C/a>\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003Ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u003Cstrong>Related articles\u003C/strong>\u003C/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003Cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog/cyber-security-for-small-businesses-nine-things-that-cost-nothing\">Cyber security for small businesses: nine things that cost nothing\u003C/a>\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog/online-shop-plugins-weakest-link\">Your online shop’s plugins could be its weakest link\u003C/a>\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog/asos-hack-fake-trusted-contact\">The ASOS hack started with a fake ‘trusted contact’. Would you spot one?\u003C/a>\u003C/li>\n\n\n\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https://www.grizzlyware.com/blog/php2shell-what-happened-and-why-keeping-your-website-up-to-date-is-essential\">PHP2Shell: what happened, and why keeping your website up to date is essential\u003C/a>\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n","https://blog.grizzlyware.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/markus-spiske-S7GcgdI7WjQ-unsplash2-scaled.jpg",".com written on a screen",[15,19,23,27],{"id":16,"name":17,"slug":18},67,"business risk management","business-risk-management",{"id":20,"name":21,"slug":22},66,"cyber security for SMEs","cyber-security-for-smes",{"id":24,"name":25,"slug":26},123,"website maintenance","website-maintenance",{"id":28,"name":29,"slug":29},43,"websites",[31],{"id":32,"name":33,"slug":34},125,"Security","security",1793270858898]