untangling_the_web

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3. Look at the Domain Whois record: ripe.net is registered with Network Solutions,
Inc.
4. Look at the Network Whois records: 193.0.0.203 is not registered in the ARIN
(American) Whois database; it is registered in the RIPE (European) Whois
database.
One point of this example is to warn people against making assumptions about the
relationship between domain names and IP addresses, especially the generic TLDs
such as .com, .net, .org, .info, .and .biz. Do not assume that a domain name in any
of these generic TLDs will have an IP address registered by ARIN, the North
American Registry. However, Local Registries (usually country-level registries)
often have restrictions on who can and cannot register their top-level
domains. In these cases, IP addresses and domain names are more likely to
correspond (e.g., a .ru domain almost certainly has an IP address registered in the
RIPE database) , but even in these cases, there are exceptions .
There are many variations in the precise type, format , quantity , and quality of the
information each tool described below provides. I will explain the features of each so
you can get an idea of which tool to use in which circumstance . For each tool I have
listed its special features so you can quickly determine which tool is right for your
specific research need.
World Network Whois Databases:
AfriNIC, APN~C, ARiN, LACNIC, & RIPE
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Special features : official international registrars of IP addresses; advanced search
on many other fields in Whois database.
All five international registrars permit simple and advanced queries of the Whois
databases via web interfaces . Each database must be queried separately;
however, there are third-party sites that will query all these databases at one time.
Advanced search pages at each site give instructions on which fields in the Whois
database can be searched. For example, all the Whois advanced searches permit
lookups of network name, person (mayor may not be an individual), AS
(autonomous system) number, and even an associated domain, although these
Whois databases should not be used for domain name lookups.
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