Is gov.uk legit?
What counts for it
- Registered 23 years ago ().
- Operated by Government of the United Kingdom (central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; based in Palace of Westminster, United Kingdom). Verified through the organisation's official-website record on Wikidata.
- This is the brand's own domain; other domains are checked against it.
- Not on Google Safe Browsing or URLhaus. Blocklists catch phishing and malware, not shops that never ship.
- Valid certificate from GlobalSign nv-sa. Encryption only; scam sites have this too.
What counts against it
- No mail server (MX) for the domain, so it cannot receive email.
- 94.9% uptime over 30 days.
About Government of the United Kingdom
gov.uk is the official website of Government of the United Kingdom, central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The company was based in Palace of Westminster, United Kingdom. The Internet Archive first captured it in 2003. It ranks #310 among the most visited sites in the world on the Tranco list. It is hosted in United States on the Fastly, Inc. network.
The signals
weights are public · method| Signal | What we found | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | 94.9% uptime over 30 days. | −4 |
| Mail server | No mail server (MX) for the domain, so it cannot receive email. | −3 |
| Owner privacy | Owner identity hidden behind a privacy service. Legal for individuals; a warning sign for a business taking payments. | −2 |
| Domain age | Registered 23 years ago (). | 0 |
| Website content | A working website with readable content. | 0 |
| Domain name | Nothing unusual about the name or ending. | 0 |
| Company registry | Operated by Government of the United Kingdom (central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; based in Palace of Westminster, United Kingdom). Verified through the organisation's official-website record on Wikidata. | 0 |
| Visitor reports | No visitor reports yet. | 0 |
| Related sites | No shared identifiers with flagged sites. | 0 |
| Imitates a brand | This is the brand's own domain; other domains are checked against it. | 0 |
| Blocklists | Not on Google Safe Browsing or URLhaus. Blocklists catch phishing and malware, not shops that never ship. | 0 |
| Refund policy | Not assessed: established site, page checks are aimed at unknown shops. | 0 |
| Contact details | Not assessed: established site, page checks are aimed at unknown shops. | 0 |
| Postal address | Not assessed: established site, page checks are aimed at unknown shops. | 0 |
| Recent changes | No recent template change detected. | 0 |
| Payment methods | Not assessed: established site, page checks are aimed at unknown shops. | 0 |
| Shipping origin | Not assessed: established site, page checks are aimed at unknown shops. | 0 |
| Discount claims | Not assessed: established site, page checks are aimed at unknown shops. | 0 |
| TLS certificate | Valid certificate from GlobalSign nv-sa. Encryption only; scam sites have this too. | 0 |
| Traffic rank | Ranked #310 worldwide by traffic (Tranco). | 0 |
| First seen on the web | Archived by the Wayback Machine since 2003. | 0 |
| Official status page | No status page in the common Statuspage or Instatus format was found at status.gov.uk. | 0 |
payment: Card · hosted: US (AS54113 Fastly, Inc.) · first archived: 2003-06-01
Technical details
| Server address | 151.101.192.144 · Fastly, Inc. · United States |
| Certificate | issued by GlobalSign nv-sa, valid until 2026-12-28 |
| no mail server | |
| Traffic rank | #310 worldwide (Tranco) |
| First archived | 2003-06-01 (Wayback Machine) |
Visitor reports
0 totalDuplicates are removed by device and network. Reports with links are discarded. Reports are counts and categories, not reviews.
Common questions
Is gov.uk a real company?
Yes. gov.uk is the official website of Government of the United Kingdom, central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The link between the organisation and this domain is recorded on Wikidata, which lists the official website for every notable company.
I already paid. What should I do?
Contact your bank or card issuer and ask for a chargeback, quoting "goods not received" or "not as described". Keep screenshots of the order and any messages. Then add a report here so the next person sees it.
How is the score calculated?
Twenty automated checks, each with a published weight, plus visitor reports. The table above shows every signal and what it cost. Read the full method.
Uptime, 30 days
Related trust checks
Own this site?
Dispute any signal with evidence. Corrections are reviewed within 48 hours and the score history stays public.
Dispute a resultNothing here is an allegation against anyone: the score describes public signals at 24 Sep 2026 and is recalculated as they change.