Do You Clear Old DNS Records When Buying a Used Domain?

[NiceNICDomainServerNiceNICDomainServer is verified member.]

When people check a used domain, they usually look at backlinks, archive history, trademarks, and past use. But old DNS records seem easy to overlook.

I've seen domains still carrying old TXT records, mail records, verification records, or CNAMEs from previous setups. Maybe most are harmless, but if you do not know what they connect to, it feels like a small risk to leave them there.

When you buy an expired or aftermarket domain, do you wipe the DNS zone first, or review each record before touching anything?

 

[cloudcloud is verified member.]

Unless it was transferred to you with a website and or mail or some other service on the domain that you expect to keep you should remove all DNS records. Even better, remove all name servers or set your own ones.

By not removing DNS records you are delegating control of your domain to others, leaving TXT records that are not relevant to you and behaviours that you probably don't care about.

I cannot think of a thing in someones old DNS records that needs to be retained.

 

[NiceNICDomainServerNiceNICDomainServer is verified member.]

Unless it was transferred to you with a website and or mail or some other service on the domain that you expect to keep you should remove all DNS records. Even better, remove all name servers or set your own ones.

By not removing DNS records you are delegating control of your domain to others, leaving TXT records that are not relevant to you and behaviours that you probably don't care about.

I cannot think of a thing in someones old DNS records that needs to be retained.

Agreed. If the buyer is only taking the domain name, not the old website or mail setup, starting with clean nameservers makes a lot of sense.