[Blog](/blog) Show links Resources [Blog](/blog) [Breaches](/breaches) [eBooks, reports, & more](/resources) [Events](/events) [News](/news) [Risks and Vulnerabilities](/category/risks-and-vulnerabilities) Show links Categories [Attack Surface Management](/category/attack-surface-management) [Company News](/category/company-news) [Compliance and Regulations](/category/compliance-and-regulations) [Cybersecurity](/category/cybersecurity) [Data Breaches](/category/data-breaches) [DevOps](/category/devops) [Human Cyber Risk](/category/human-cyber-risk) [Risks and Vulnerabilities](/category/risks-and-vulnerabilities) [Third-Party Risk Management](/category/third-party-risk-management) [Vendor Risk Management](/category/vendor-risk-management) [Protect Your Site from Domain Expiration](/blog/domain-expiration) Publish date January 16, 2025 {x} minute read # Protect Your Site from Domain Expiration [Get a demo](/contact-sales) [Free trial](/demo) [Download the PDF guide](#) [Free trial](/demo) Written by [Caitlin Postal](/team/caitlin-postal) Technical Writer Reviewed by [Greg Pollock](/team/greg-pollock) Director of Research and Insights Greg is a CISA-certified cybersecurity researcher who holds multiple patents for data leak detection. His findings have been featured in The New York Times, Forbes, and Wired. Table of contents Free resource ### [Download now](#) Nearly every company in the modern era has a website. This site, sometimes called a web application, functions as the information center for the business. Keeping your website active is critical for ensuring that your customers and prospects can access the information they need. Maintaining a website also creates brand presence and strong search engine optimization (SEO), which helps businesses to build trust and credibility in their industry. Every website has a top-level domain (the URL that people use to access the website) that is registered with a domain name registrar. The registrar routes your website's machine-readable IP address to the human-readable domain name using a Domain Name System (DNS). Using a top-level domain (TLD) improves your users' ability to access your site since they won't need to memorize the string of numbers that comprise your IP address. Your TLD also protects your IP address from IP-related risk exposure. To support your customers with on-demand service and to protect your brand value, you should track your domain as an asset and ensure that you are aware of any potential risks or issues that could impact customer usage, like an upcoming domain expiry date. ## Common Domain Expiration Risks Once you have registered your domain with a reliable domain name registrar, you will need to maintain your registration after the term duration. It's important to keep track of your domain's registration status so that your site remains available to users and does not expire. Some domain registrars offer multi-year terms or automatic renewal. You can use a continuous monitoring tool like [UpGuard Breach Risk](https://www.upguard.com/product/breachsight) to automate your domain asset management. Breach Risk identifies vulnerabilities in your external attack surface and other risks impacting your domains, including domain expiration. [UpGuard Breach Risk](https://www.upguard.com/product/breachsight) notifies you of the following findings related to your domain's expiration: * **Domain expires soon** * **Domain expired** Domains must be renewed within specified intervals to maintain ownership of the name, otherwise your ownership expires and the domain name becomes available to others. If you receive the **Domain expires soon** notification, you can renew your domain registration to maintain site access and protect your brand ownership. If you receive the **Domain expired** notification, you should take immediate action to renew your domain and configure auto-renewal for future expirations. Most domain registrars offer a 30-day grace period for the domain owner to renew an expired domain name before it becomes available to third parties. If your domain is inactive or otherwise pending with your registrar, Breach Risk will notify you with these risk findings: * **Domain flagged as inactive** * **Domain pending deletion** * **Domain pending restoration** If your registered domain includes an \[.rt-script]Inactive\[.rt-script] status code, it does not have name servers associated and will not be publicly accessible on the internet. In this case, create nameserver (NS) records that connect your domain to the appropriate IP address. For domains that are pending deletion or restoration, you may need to contact your registrar about the status code as it pertains to your domain registration. A \[.rt-script]pendingDelete\[.rt-script] code means that your domain will be available for public purchase within a few days. A \[.rt-script]pendingRestore code\[.rt-script] means that you have requested restoration within the grace period for renewal and the registry is pending documentation to finalize the renewal. In addition to domain expiration risks, UpGuard can also monitor [typosquatting](https://www.upguard.com/blog/typosquatting) that targets variations of your domain name. If you receive one of these domain findings, take action to resolve the issue. ## How to Resolve Domain Expiration Findings If your domain has expired or may expire soon, you should renew your domain as soon as possible. If your provider offers auto-renewal, you can enable that billing process to ensure that your site remains available to your users and prospective customers. The [Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers](https://www.icann.org/) (ICANN) requires that your domain registrar send two renewal reminders with the expiration date of your domain to the registrant email provided. A continuous monitoring tool like UpGuard Breach Risk will also monitor your domain's proximity to expiration. An accredited domain registrar typically offers a grace period after expiration during which time you can renew your domain without others being able to acquire your domain name. Ensure that you have updated your billing information to pay your renewal fee and avoid incurring additional fees. If your domain has been deleted, an accredited registrar must provide a 30-day period during which time the domain may be restored (known as the redemption grace period). Restoration during the redemption grace period may be subject to redemption fees. After the five-day redemption period ends, the domain name becomes available for re-registration, whether by the initial registrant or a separate party, on a first-come first-served basis. Note that these rules apply to the ICANN regulations for top-level domains and do not apply to country code TLDs (ccTLDs). To prevent your domain from lapsing, you can use an automated tool like Breach Risk to remain aware of your assets and any upcoming expirations. ### How UpGuard Can Help The Breach Risk Domains module is your hub for managing your domain assets. UpGuard automatically identifies and monitors your organization's domains, including both [active and inactive domains](https://help.upguard.com/en/articles/4169913-what-s-the-difference-between-an-active-and-inactive-domain). Current UpGuard users can [log in and access the Domains module](https://cyber-risk.upguard.com/webscans) to review their domains. You can filter the domains by a specific risk finding (such as the domain expiry checker), or search for individual notifications in your [Risk Profile](https://help.upguard.com/en/articles/4491787-what-is-your-risk-profile). If you're not a current UpGuard user and you want to run an automated scan of your domains with Breach Risk, [sign up for a trial](https://www.upguard.com/demo). ## How to Renew Your Domain Each domain registrar has a slightly different user experience so be sure that you check your specific registrar for the requisite renewal actions or other domain name registration needs. Your domain registrar should be accredited with ICANN. Navigate to the domain renewal area for the following commonly used domain registrars: * **Squarespace** offers an annual automatic renewal for domains that can be managed from the Domains area of your account. * **Google Domains** are being transferred to **Squarespace**. * **GoDaddy** offers an automatic renewal or a manual renewal that can be managed from your Domain Portfolio. * **Bluehost** domains can be renewed from the Renewal Center of your account. * **HostGator** domains can be managed from the Customer Portal with auto-renewal or manual renewal. * **DNSimple** domains are set up with auto-renewal by default but can also be renewed manually in the Domains section. Enable auto-renewal and ensure that you have set up notification reminders about your domain's expiration date. Renewal prices and registration fees also vary by the registrar. If you are dissatisfied with your registrar and prefer to change to a different one, you will need to disable your domain transfer lock, then initiate a transfer from the administrative interface of your new provider. You will need to verify the transfer with the appropriate confirmation activity. If you make any changes to your name servers or wish to register a new domain, you will also need to update the domain's DNS records with your hosting provider. Each cloud service provider offers a unique portal for managing DNS records, and many providers offer a CLI or API method for updating your DNS records. Be sure to check your provider's documentation for guidance on how to update your DNS records and maintain uptime stability. Free resource ### [Download now](#) ## Related posts Learn more about the latest issues in cybersecurity. Risks and Vulnerabilities #### [25 Security Vulnerabilities That Have Defined the 2020s (Thus Far)](/blog/top-25-security-vulnerabilities-of-the-2020s) From Log4j to SolarWinds, discover the 25 critical security vulnerabilities that have reshaped cybersecurity thus far in the 2020s. [](/team/nicholas-sollitto) [Nicholas Sollitto](#) May 28, 2026 Risks and Vulnerabilities #### [ServiceNow Vulnerabilities: CVE-2024-4789 and CVE-2024-5217](/blog/servicenow-vulnerabilities) Learn about two critical vulnerabilities affecting the ServiceNow platform (CVE-2024-4789 and CVE-2024-5217) and how UpGuard can help. [](/team/nicholas-sollitto) [Nicholas Sollitto](#) January 16, 2025 Risks and Vulnerabilities #### [PHP2Shell: A Clear Explanation and Response Framework](/blog/php2shell-a-clear-explanation-and-response-framework) PHP2Shell (CVE-2026-109618 and CVE-2026-109619) lets unauthenticated attackers run code on PHP servers. Learn who’s affected and how to respond. [](/team/upguard) [UpGuard Team](#) October 22, 2026 Risks and Vulnerabilities #### [Everything Everywhere: Systemic Data Exposure in Supabase Apps](/blog/everything-everywhere-systemic-data-exposure-in-supabase-apps) Supabase is a favorite of AI coding agents. It's also prone to misconfiguration. We studied more than 16,000 open databases to see what's leaking. [](/team/greg-pollock) [Greg Pollock](#) October 14, 2026 Risks and Vulnerabilities #### [Oracle Just Shipped 1,449 Security Patches in One Quarter. We Checked How Much of It Is Actually New.](/blog/oracle-just-shipped-1-449-security-patches-in-one-quarter-we-checked-how-much-of-it-is-actually-new) Oracle's July 2026 update shipped 1,449 security patches — 2.8x its all-time record. We parsed 23 quarters of advisories to find out how much is truly new. [](/team/greg-pollock) [Greg Pollock](#) July 22, 2026 Risks and Vulnerabilities #### [Data leakage risks with DBHub MCP servers](/blog/data-leakage-risks-with-dbhub-mcp-servers) UpGuard found exposed DBHub servers leaking live databases to the open internet—an early sign that MCP exposure is becoming a systemic data risk. [](/team/greg-pollock) [Greg Pollock](#) October 13, 2026 [All posts](/blog) Experience superior visibility and a simpler approach to cyber risk management [Get a demo](/contact-sales) [Free trial](/demo)