Verifying against the live site and live WHOIS/DNS…
Common questions
Is popsci.com legit or a scam?
AboutUs doesn't label sites "legit" or "a scam": this page lists the dated registration, DNS, HTTPS, mail-authentication and safety checks we could verify, each with its source, so you can decide for yourself.
Who owns popsci.com?
Nobody has completed AboutUs's owner verification for popsci.com. That's true of most sites here — it isn't itself a warning sign.
Correct a description, link or other detail. Submissions are reviewed before publication.
3 of 4 safety checks passed (Oct 25, 2026).
Registered 1995 · site is live · HTTPS valid
PopSci.com Popular science magazine offers science news and DIY resources
PopSci.com is a monthly magazine covering current science and technology news, along with DIY resources for general audiences. Operated by Bonnier Active Media Inc., the site has been online for over 30 years.
Registered 31 years ago · on AboutUs since 2006 · one registrar since Jul 23, 2026 · last checked Sep 30, 2026.
Registration
RegisteredAug 21, 1995popsci.com was registered on Aug 21, 1995.Source: RDAP, fetched Sep 19, 2026
AboutUs record
AboutUs wiki pageAboutUs wiki pageJun 21, 2006 – Nov 5, 2013An AboutUs wiki page described popsci.com from Jun 21, 2006 to Nov 5, 2013 (4 edits).Source: AboutUs wiki archive, 2006–2023
Registrar
CSC Corporate Domains, Inc.Jul 23, 2026 – Sep 29, 2026 (latest)Registrar CSC Corporate Domains, Inc. in the RDAP data AboutUs recorded, first on Jul 23, 2026 and most recently on Sep 29, 2026.Source: RDAP, fetched Sep 19, 2026
Zone file
Seen in the .com zone fileSep 8, 2026 – Sep 18, 2026 (latest)First seen in the .com zone file records AboutUs holds on Sep 8, 2026; latest sighting Sep 18, 2026. Nameservers on Sep 18, 2026: melinda.ns.cloudflare.com, stan.ns.cloudflare.com.Source: ICANN CZDS zone file, snapshot Sep 18, 2026
Certificate
Certificate from Let's EncryptAug 4, 2026 – Sep 27, 2026 (latest)Let's Encrypt certificate valid Aug 4, 2026 to Nov 2, 2026, as seen on Sep 27, 2026.Source: TLS check, Sep 27, 2026
200020102020Oct ’25Jan ’26Apr ’26Jul ’26← last 12 months, drawn wider
Every dated fact on this lifeline (7)
Aug 21, 1995Registration: popsci.com was registered on Aug 21, 1995.Source: RDAP, fetched Sep 19, 2026
Jun 21, 2006 – Nov 5, 2013AboutUs record: An AboutUs wiki page described popsci.com from Jun 21, 2006 to Nov 5, 2013 (4 edits).Source: AboutUs wiki archive, 2006–2023
Jul 1, 2006AboutUs record: “Monthly magazine about current science and technology.”Source: AboutUs wiki archive, 2006
Jun 19, 2026 – Sep 30, 2026AboutUs record: Authority and Safety last refreshed Sep 30, 2026.Source: AboutUs checks
Jul 23, 2026 – Sep 29, 2026Registrar: Registrar CSC Corporate Domains, Inc. in the RDAP data AboutUs recorded, first on Jul 23, 2026 and most recently on Sep 29, 2026.Source: RDAP, fetched Sep 19, 2026
Aug 4, 2026 – Sep 27, 2026Certificate: Let's Encrypt certificate valid Aug 4, 2026 to Nov 2, 2026, as seen on Sep 27, 2026.Source: TLS check, Sep 27, 2026
Said about itself in 2006
Jul 1, 2006
“Monthly magazine about current science and technology.”
Source: AboutUs wiki archive, 2006
Current AboutUs recordJun 19, 2026 – Sep 30, 2026 (latest)Authority and Safety last refreshed Sep 30, 2026.Source: AboutUs checks
Sep 8, 2026 – Sep 18, 2026
Zone file: First seen in the .com zone file records AboutUs holds on Sep 8, 2026; latest sighting Sep 18, 2026. Nameservers on Sep 18, 2026: melinda.ns.cloudflare.com, stan.ns.cloudflare.com.Source: ICANN CZDS zone file, snapshot Sep 18, 2026
Automated safety checks
DNS (passed)
HTTPS (passed)
Page metadata (passed)
Security headers (failed)
Add the HSTS, Content-Security-Policy, and X-Frame-Options response headers.
AboutUs has not vetted this site. Everything below is what we could measure automatically. Anything you do on the site — paying, sharing personal details, downloading — is between you and the site, not AboutUs.
Current facts
Latest available measurements; dated entries retain their dates. These are measurements, not an endorsement of the site.
latest result
Bonnier Active Media Inc. — company name on record since 2006; still matches the live site.
latest result
Domain registered Aug 21, 1995 — 31 years old.
latest result
Registrar on record: CSC Corporate Domains, Inc. — unchanged since AboutUs began tracking (Jul 23, 2026).
latest result
HTTPS request succeeded for www.popsci.com.
checked Sep 29, 2026
The live front page reads as a news or media site that publishes free content supported by ads, mainly for a general audience.
Authority 87/100— ahead of 87% of the August 2026 scored sampleClear
Why this authority score
87 is a percentile: higher than 87% of sites we score.
How it's calculated
Prominence (Tranco rank #4,535)+10
Verified continuity: 31.2 years (RDAP registration)+11
Security & email hygiene+4
Calibration adjustment (published map)+19
Model score: 44/99 — what these reason lines add up to.
Published Authority (percentile): 87/100 — this site's rank against the August 2026 scored sample. Public Authority is capped at 99.
Safety evidence
No unexpired threat-feed result; name-similarity check available (recorded about 25 days ago); 3/3 transport and email checks available (oldest recorded about 25 days ago). This is evidence coverage, not a probability that a website is safe.
What popsci.com said about itself, 2006
Quoted from the site's AboutUs wiki page in each year it changed (1 version). These are the page's own words at the time, not AboutUs's assessment. New words · dropped words
2006
Monthly magazine about current science and technology.
Site history
Dated record — historical facts always carry their date; self-description below is the 2013 record.
1995
Domain registered (Aug 21, 1995).
2006
First tracked by AboutUs (Jun 21, 2006); profile edited 4 times through 2013.
2013
Self-description at the time:
“PopSci.com Popular science magazine offers science news and DIY resources”