Can Google consider having whois data private as a bad practice? I just remember that I saw it somewhere, but not sure.
No one told me, I just saw it some where, probably in a blog post. I also think that it may not be a heavy factor. But as WebGeek182 has said, I just feel it can be a minor factor. My concern is, will this be a issue when starting out? Will it increase the time spend in sandbox? Even when proper techniques have been used?
I think it can be a problem for google, but being mass spammed is a problem too, specially if you own many domains, so what choice do we have?
Hi rehash, Thanks for raising this. That's exactly what bugs me. Should we tolerate spam just to keep Google happy in every way possible? Sometimes this may not be an issue at all. But I am little bit worry with all the discussions regarding Google's concerns on domain names.
It does not effect anything in Google. What they look at when it comes to whois information is how long you have had the domain and how long it is registered for. Those who pay for 5 plus years in advance have seemed in the past to get a boost in the SERPs. Even if it did, there is some point where you need to decide the difference between pleasing Google and doing what is right for you.
Some people who have political or religious sites can get hate mail or even threats. So they feel safer if their registration is private. This shouldn't be penalized.