Reshaping Cyberspace: Beyond the Emerging Online Mercenaries and the Aftermath of SolarWinds

Ahmed Mansoor is an internationally recognized human rights defender based in the Middle East and recipient of the Martin Ennals Award (sometimes referred to as a "Nobel Prize for human rights"), On August 10 and 11, 2016, Mansoor received an SMS text messages on his iPhone promising "new secrets" about detainees tortured if he clicked on an included link. Instead of clicking, Mansoor sent the messages to the Canadian Citizen Lab researchers. more

New gTLDs and the Power of “Because”

Despite numerous false starts over the last decade it appears that 2011 will be the year ICANN finally implements a new generic Top-Level Domain (gTLD) process that will lead to the responsible expansion of the domain name space. One of the important remaining steps in this process will be the upcoming meeting between the ICANN Board and the Government Advisory Committee (GAC) intended to resolve a number of outstanding differences. more

Faceobook on Connecting the World from the Sky

Facebook has announced more details on how its Connectivity Lab is working to connect the world from the sky with drones, satellites and lasers. more

ICANN Chair Elections Test Its Institutional Integrity

The ICANN Board will soon be considering candidates for election to the position of ICANN Chairperson and Vice Chair, which compels me to remind both the Board and the ICANN community of the fact that one of the members pursuing the Chairmanship is the subject of an on-going Australian Freedom of Information Act, which was initiated by the irregularities that brought about this individuals dismissal from the .au Domain Administration. more

Not World War III - This Time the ICT Revolution

In the past it has been wars and revolutions that created major changes in society. It was only after these events that old ideas, structures and doctrines gave way. And in many countries wars and revolutions are still functioning as a tool for change -- the Arab Revolution and the collapse of the Soviet Empire are good examples of this. But wars and revolutions are disruptive in an economic sense, cost the lives of many people, and necessitate costly rebuilds after the even more

What the Global Digital Compact Taught Us About Future Internet Governance Debates

On September 22, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Global Digital Compact (GDC), marking one of the most significant intergovernmental agreements on digital issues in the past two decades. Appended to the Pact for the Future, the GDC is a non-binding agreement that outlines a global governance framework for a wide range of digital issues, including internet governance and the Internet Governance Forum (IGF). more

In Response to CADNA: Cybersquatting is Not Criminal But a Civil Matter

The Coalition Against Domain Name Abuse (CADNA) recently released a statement that implied that cybersquatting is a criminal activity. It said, "CADNA has been working diligently to further international and national policies that combat the practice of cybersquatting... As brands continue to learn about the prevalence and practice of online criminal activities..." While, Internet Commerce Association (ICA) vigorously opposes cybersquatting, it is important to note that cybersquatting is a civil matter, not a criminal one. There is a good reason that cybersquatting is a civil matter... more

The IANA Transition’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Thursday, September 8, 2016 was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day for the prospects of the IANA functions transition being completed by October 1, 2016. Indeed, that same date - but in 2017 - may be the earliest that the handoff from NTIA to ICANN can be completed, given what last Thursday. The day began with the announcement that Sen. Ted Cruz would be making his first Senate floor remarks since exiting the Republican Presidential race, and that the talk's focus would be a continuation and escalation of his long-standing opposition to "Obama's Internet giveaway". Shortly after 11 am, Sen. Cruz began speaking from his Senate desk... more

DNS Complexity Lessons

Recently, Bert Hubert wrote of a growing problem in the networking world: the complexity of DNS. We have two systems we all use in the Internet, DNS and BGP. Both of these systems appear to be able to handle anything we can throw at them and "keep on ticking." But how far can we drive the complexity of these systems before they ultimately fail? Bert posted a chart on the APNIC blog to illustrate the problem. more

Live Video Stream of IGF-USA On Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Coming up on this Wednesday, July 16, 2014, the 2014 Internet Governance Forum - USA (IGF-USA) will take place at George Washington University in Washington, DC. I'm told by one of the people involved that there are around 500 people currently registered to attend. The agenda looks quite amazing... If you are, like me, unable to attend in person, the good news is that we can follow along through a live video stream... more

ACLU Released Guide for Developers on How to Respond to Government Demands That Compromise Security

It is not uncommon for government agents to force technology companies to create or install malicious software in products in order to help them with surveillance. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has released a guide for developers that is intended to help preserve security and customers' privacy. more

No Cyberattack on Wall Street

In case you missed it, last Thursday, May 6, we saw a remarkable day on the stock markets. The day started off with some selling which went down neat and orderly. Suddenly, around 2:40 pm eastern time, the market started selling off rapidly taking huge hits in in the span of 30 minutes. It was an incredible ride and at one point, the Dow Jones average was off 1000 points for the day, the largest drop in history (though not the largest percentage drop). It was kind of like October of 1987. more

Content Filtering Ineffective, Harmful According to Public Knowledge Study

A report released today by Public Knowledge points out that their recent analysis indicates filtering Internet content, as advocated by media companies, will not be effective and in fact harmful to the Internet. An accompanying 60-page whitepaper contains the full report including a number of reasons why the user of copyright filters should not be allowed, encouraged or mandated on U.S. Internet Service Provider (ISP) networks. more

EURid Releases 74,000 Disputed Names

EURid has unfrozen 74,000 domains that were part of a dispute against domain warehousers. In July, EURid relented to outside pressure as it suspended the registration of 74,000 domains. They claimed these domains were registered directly by three registrars, not on behalf of clients, which violated EURid's terms. But the registrars have won this round... more

Beyond WHOIS: CircleID and Edgemoor Research Institute Second Event on ‘Filling the Gaps’

Experts at a CircleID and Edgemoor Research Institute webinar debated the challenges of domain registration data access in a post-GDPR world. Panelists explored the tension between privacy laws and legitimate data requests, the role of automation in disclosure decisions, and the need for a scalable, trust-based framework to balance compliance, cybersecurity, and enforcement interests. more