NordVPN Promotion

Home / Blogs

ICANN’s Auction Piggy Bank Just Got Twice As Big

Protect your privacy:  Get NordVPN  [73% off 2-year plans, 3 extra months]
10 facts about NordVPN that aren't commonly known
  • Meshnet Feature for Personal Encrypted Networks: NordVPN offers a unique feature called Meshnet, which allows users to connect their devices directly and securely over the internet. This means you can create your own private, encrypted network for activities like gaming, file sharing, or remote access to your home devices from anywhere in the world.
  • RAM-Only Servers for Enhanced Security: Unlike many VPN providers, NordVPN uses RAM-only (diskless) servers. Since these servers run entirely on volatile memory, all data is wiped with every reboot. This ensures that no user data is stored long-term, significantly reducing the risk of data breaches and enhancing overall security.
  • Servers in a Former Military Bunker: Some of NordVPN's servers are housed in a former military bunker located deep underground. This unique location provides an extra layer of physical security against natural disasters and unauthorized access, ensuring that the servers are protected in all circumstances.
  • NordLynx Protocol with Double NAT Technology: NordVPN developed its own VPN protocol called NordLynx, built around the ultra-fast WireGuard protocol. What sets NordLynx apart is its implementation of a double Network Address Translation (NAT) system, which enhances user privacy without sacrificing speed. This innovative approach solves the potential privacy issues inherent in the standard WireGuard protocol.
  • Dark Web Monitor Feature: NordVPN includes a feature known as Dark Web Monitor. This tool actively scans dark web sites and forums for credentials associated with your email address. If it detects that your information has been compromised or appears in any data breaches, it promptly alerts you so you can take necessary actions to protect your accounts.

Kieren McCarthy reports in The Register that an obscure Panamanian company paid $30 million for .BLOG in the January 21 domain auction. ICANN’s web site confirms that the domain did go to the Panamanian company. It doesn’t report the amount, but Kieren’s sources are usually correct. If so, the auction proceeds piggy bank just doubled from $30M to $60M dollars, and ICANN still has no idea what to do with it.

One interesting idea I’ve heard is to use part of it to fund open source DNS projects. Put some amount in a trust earmarked for DNS code projects, and spend the income on stuff like upgraded DNS libraries. Last week in Singapore people at the Universal Domain Acceptance session said that’s still a problem, and one participant pointed out that if they want better DNS software they could pay people to write it and give it away. So that’s an obvious place to start, with benefits that would be much broader than the usual “bring people from poor countries to ICANN meetings” suggestions.

By John Levine, Author, Consultant & Speaker

Filed Under

Comments

Not quite Rubens Kuhl  –  Feb 15, 2015 8:27 PM

Private auction funds do not go to ICANN, so ICANN has not doubled up. http://newgtlds.icann.org/en/applicants/auctions/proceeds lists current information; next ICANN last resort auction is on February 25, and only scheduled strings are not privately settled before that will go into ICANN managed auction proceeds.

Oops John Levine  –  Feb 15, 2015 9:55 PM

You’re right, this would have been in the Feb 25 ICANN auction, but it was taken out of that.

The $30 million number is also incorrect. Kevin Murphy  –  Feb 16, 2015 10:37 AM

The $30 million number is also incorrect.

"an obscure Panamanian company" John Berryhill  –  Feb 19, 2015 4:39 PM

I’m curious to know what function the word “obscure” performs here.  Personally, I couldn’t name a single Panamanian company, or maybe one or two if I thought on it for a while.  There is a canal there, and perhaps a company which runs it.  However, by my personal benchmark of almost complete ignorance of Panamanian commerce, there are no “well known” Panamanian companies.  One imagines that results differ, depending on the location and background of the reader of this site.

Is the company “obscure” in some universal sense, is it based on your otherwise comprehensive knowledge of Panamanian companies in general, or is the word in this sentence intended to suggest this company is actively engaged in hiding something?  It’s a great word to convey a sense of covert wrongdoing without any particular substantive basis, so I’m curious to know how it landed in this sentence and what, if anything, it is intended to convey to the reader.  What makes one Panamanian company any more obscure than another?

Nothing obscure about obscure John Levine  –  Feb 19, 2015 6:08 PM

Hi, John. For nearly all TLD applicants, it’s easy to tell who’s behind them. Primer Nivel purports in its application to be in Panama, and on its web page to be an existing registrar. There are three ICANN accredited registrars in Panama, and it doesn’t appear to be any of them. The contact info on their web page is in Bogota, Colombia, and there are no ICANN registrars in Colombia. The address in Panama on the application is an office used for offshore trusts, which strongly suggests the real owner is somewhere else.

So, yeah, they’re obscure. We can all speculate about why someone in Colombia might have a lot of money to invest in a new business.

Comment Title:

  Notify me of follow-up comments

We encourage you to post comments and engage in discussions that advance this post through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can report it using the link at the end of each comment. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of CircleID. For more information on our comment policy, see Codes of Conduct.

CircleID Newsletter The Weekly Wrap

More and more professionals are choosing to publish critical posts on CircleID from all corners of the Internet industry. If you find it hard to keep up daily, consider subscribing to our weekly digest. We will provide you a convenient summary report once a week sent directly to your inbox. It's a quick and easy read.

Related

Topics

Domain Names

Sponsored byVerisign

New TLDs

Sponsored byRadix

Brand Protection

Sponsored byCSC

Threat Intelligence

Sponsored byWhoisXML API

Cybersecurity

Sponsored byVerisign

IPv4 Markets

Sponsored byIPv4.Global

DNS

Sponsored byDNIB.com

NordVPN Promotion