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Frequently asked questions

  • I am looking for a domain name registrant. Where can I look it up?

    The Whois is an easy-to-use tool for checking the availability of a .nl domain name. If the domain name is already taken, you can see who has registered it.

    On the page looking up a domain name you will find more information about what a domain name is, how the Whois works and how the privacy of personal data is protected. Alternatively, you can go straight to look for a domain name via the Whois.

  • I would like to transfer my domain name to another registrar. What is the procedure?

    To get your domain name transferred, you need the token (unique ID number) for your domain name. Your existing registrar has the token and is obliged to give it to you within five days, if you ask for it. The procedure for changing your registrar is described on the page transferring your domain name.

  • The details registered about me/my company are incorrect or out of date. How can I get them updated?

    To update the contact details associated with your domain name, you need to contact your registrar. Read more about updating contact details.

  • Why is my domain name in quarantine?

    When a domain name is cancelled, we aren't told the reason, so we can't tell you. You'll need to ask your registrar. The advantage of quarantine is that, if a name's cancelled by mistake, you can always get it back.

    One common reason is that the contract between you and your registrar says you've got to renew the registration every year. If you haven't set up automatic renewal and you don't renew manually, the registration will expire.

  • Ik heb een klacht over mijn provider/registrar. Kan ik daarvoor bij SIDN terecht?

    Wanneer je een klacht hebt over of een geschil met je registrar dan zijn er verschillende mogelijkheden om tot een oplossing te komen. Hierover lees je meer op pagina klacht over registrar. SIDN heeft geen formele klachtenprocedure voor het behandelen van een klacht over jouw registrar.

  • What conditions do I have to meet as a registrar?

    Would you like to be able to register domain names for customers or for your own organisation by dealing directly with SIDN? If so, you can become a .nl registrar. Read more about the conditions and how to apply for registrar status on the page becoming a registrar.

More frequently asked questions

Filterbubbel.nl promotes discussion and reduces 'us-and-them' thinking in schools

SIDN Fund supports nationwide rollout of the Filter Bubble project

Illustration of a hand holding a smartphone on which images are swiped away.
  • Monday 24 June 2024

Unnuanced 'us-and-them' thinking is on the rise in Dutch schools. What's more, the teaching materials used in practical and vocational secondary education are poorly aligned with young people's lived experience, and are often too language-centred for the target audience. In response, a platform called Filterbubbel.nl has been created. It's aimed at first and second-year vocational secondary students and focuses on digital skills such as critical thinking. The material on the platform is designed to tie in with the way young people experience the world and covers topics such as filter bubbles, disinformation and algorithms. "The lessons have been successfully tested at schools in Utrecht, and it's now time for a nationwide rollout," says media education advisor Ilse Meursinge, the creative mind behind the initiative.

Platform for vocational secondary students

Ilse Meursinge, media education advisor and the creative brain behind Filterbubble.nl
Ilse Meursinge, media education advisor

"Filterbubbel.nl provides materials for low-threshold, creative and interactive lessons designed to get young people thinking about topics, so as to address 'us-and-them' thinking in schools," Ilse explains. "The materials look at things such as forming your own opinions, algorithms, filter bubbles, disinformation, the future of social media, the news that appears in your feed, conspiracy theories and online quackery. Everything has been developed in consultation with young people, teachers and youth workers. As a result, the lessons are visual, practical and interactive. Each of them involves individual online assignments, a group assignment and a class-based sum-up. First, students watch an animation in class. Then each student explores the topic individually online. After that, the youngsters get together in groups to do a 'bubble-breaker' assignment. That involves a series of short tasks designed to make them aware of their own thought patterns and the differences and similarities between their individual (online) filter bubbles."

Positive experiences and increased awareness

Logo of Filterbubbel.nl

Filterbubbel.nl received an enthusiastic response from a group of schools in the Dutch city of Utrecht invited to test the platform. "We had a lot of positive feedback," confirms Ilse. "It was particularly clear that students thought the material was quite different from the mainstream. The lessons address issues that are part of young people's everyday lives, even if they don't always realise it. Another thing the feedback showed was that the lessons have a real effect on awareness. Students get to see why certain content appears in their feeds, and that people with different backgrounds and experiences can see things differently. So they get a glimpse of one another's online worlds and learn to explain why they make particular choices and what they're influenced by."

Nationwide rollout

"Having received positive feedback from users, it was time to move on to the next phase: making the platform more widely available so that more students and teachers around the country can benefit," Ilse continues. "Various technical improvements were made to enable that. For example, a visitor can now register their school for access to the online environment and a free introductory lesson. If they like that and pay for wider access, they get to explore an online environment with all the supporting material. We're currently doing a trial mini-launch, as a dry run for the full launch in September."

Support from SIDN Fund

Mieke van Heesewijk, Programme Manager at SIDN Fund

"The support of SIDN Fund has been invaluable," says Ilse. "The Fund's financial assistance has enabled us to create the platform and now to organise the nationwide rollout. But they have been really helpful in other ways as well. Through the Fund, we've built up contacts with the organisers of other projects and other organisations with similar aims. That's led to the exchange of a lot of ideas. The confidence that SIDN Fund showed in us has given us the opportunity to scale up this initiative and make it something truly worthwhile."

Explaining the background to the Fund's involvement, Project Manager Mieke van Heesewijk says, "It's wonderful to see Filterbubbel.nl being rolled out to the whole country, helping to tackle the rise of 'us-and-them' thinking in schools. The platform's creative, interactive lessons will improve vocational secondary students' understanding of how online processes work and how to look outside their own filter bubbles. So the project is contributing to a more nuanced, cohesive society."

Still more ideas

According to Ilse, Filter Bubble's nationwide rollout doesn't mean that the project will soon be complete. "We've got lots more ideas," she says "For example, we've started work on supporting services for schools. We noticed that the schools using the platform were also interested in things such as organising parents' evenings, teacher training and study mornings linked to particular topics. We've also had enquiries from libraries wanting to get hold of the support materials. And we're big believers in bespoke products tailored to particular practical goals. So we're working with our network contacts to develop concepts using that model."

More great projects supported by SIDN Fund

Read more articles about projects that contribute to a stronger internet.