Internet Governance

Vint Cerf’s Comments on the ISOC Sale of PIR and the .ORG Registry

Vint Cerf has posted comments in support of the pending sale of PIR and the .org registry to Ethos Capital. Vint's Comments . Vint is a respected member of the Internet community, and his comments need close attention and careful assessment. Some of his comments have been discussed here earlier. Other comments, posted here and elsewhere, have either supported the sale or raised questions. more

So Many Nonprofits Have Trusted Dot Org for So Long

ICANN's Board will meet soon, perhaps even tomorrow, to discuss the dot-org domain sale. It is a pivotal inflection point in the history of Internet governance. When Internet Society (ISOC) was awarded the dot-org domain over ten other bids in 2002, evaluators voiced concerns about their ability to steward it. The report explains: Some on the Committee expressed concern, however, that ISOC's associations extend only to the networking/connectivity community and not to a broader base... more

Vint Cerf Says He Is in Favor of .ORG Acquisition, Explains Why

In a post published today titled, "A Stronger Future for .org and the Internet," by Vint Cerf -- often referred to as one the father's of the Internet – he has expressed his disappointment with the controversy surrounding Ethos Capital's proposed acquisition of the Public Interest Registry (operator of .ORG domain). more

The .ORG Debate Should be About What Its Users Want

I watch the controversy over the proposed sale of the .ORG domain with a mixture of bemusement and concern. Some in the ICANN community – mostly those who resent that the Internet ever became commercialized – oppose the sale of the Public Interest Registry to the for-profit company Ethos for $1.1 billion. The basis of their concern is that the domain for non-profits should be in the hands of a non-profit and that the new owners might increase the current $9.93 fee PIR charges for a domain. more

Internet Governance and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Part 2: Article 1-5

Digital governance, like all governance, needs to be founded in guiding principles from which all policy making is derived. There are no more fundamental principles to guide our policy making than the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, (UDHR). This article is Part 2 of a series of articles exploring the application of the UDHR to rights issues in the cyberspaces of the Internet ecosystem. The previous article in the series explores the foundations of the UDHR. more

The Power of Data in Smart City Developments

A few weeks, I attended a one-day conference at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) at the occasion of the launch of their new $7.5 million Centre for Data Science. This laboratory is also the lead node of a new Australian Data Science Network, bringing together data science organizations from across the country. The new center aims to support data-led decisions across key areas like health, environment, business, government and society -- in short, data for the good. more

The Digital Decade – A Look Back

With 2019 coming to a close, we're not just saying goodbye to the past 365 days, we're also saying goodbye to an entire decade. As we bid farewell to the 2010s, we're taking this opportunity to look back and reflect on the digital decade as well as consider what the future might have in store for us all. The past ten years were a whirlwind of change, with new advances in technology exploding onto the market at a faster pace than ever before. more

U.N. Approves Resolution to Combat Cybercrime Despite Opposition From E.U., the U.S. and Others

The U.N. General Assembly has approved a resolution to start the process of drafting a new international treaty against cybercrime despite objections from the European Union, the United States and other countries. The Russian-drafted resolution received approval from a 193-member world body with a vote of 79-60 and 33 abstentions. more

Russia Says It Has Successfully Tested a Country-Wide Alternative to the Global Internet

Russia's Ministry of Communications has announced that it has successfully tested a country-wide alternative to the global Internet and that general users did not notice any changes. more

2019 Domain Name Year in Review

And so it goes, we are coming to the end of 2019, and that can mean only one thing. It's time for another Domain Name Year in Review. And unlike years past, this year was a real doozy. So without further ado, here are the domain name industry's top 10 biggest stories for 2019... To date, 48 leading registries and registrars have signed onto the "Framework to Address Abuse." The initiative was launched in November 2019, just prior to the ICANN meeting in Montreal. more

Why the EPDP is Essential for a Long-Term Solution for WHOIS

Major European legislation, the General Data Protection Regulation, evoked substantial change in the way we deal with the visibility of domain name registration information, and understandably those that use that data to solve problems are concerned about these changes, and some have even called for a U.S. legislative fix. However, a more in-depth look at the issue and the policy-making surrounding it will show that there is, in fact, a process already well underway to address the situation. more

It’s Time for a Referendum on Orgxit

The worst thing about Brexit wasn't the referendum. It was the fallout. David Cameron decided that the best way to manage a small risk was to take a big one. Finally, over three agonizing years later, the UK looks set to move on. The Internet Society – which has run the .ORG domain since 2002 – was in the same position as Cameron. They became convinced that it was worth dealing with a small risk by taking a huge one. more

Internet Governance and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Part 1: Foundations

One could think that the authors of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) -- adopted in 1948 -- had the Internet in mind when they declared in Article 19: "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers." All human beings are entitled to certain rights, and it makes no difference if they choose to exercise them in a town square or an Internet chatroom. more

Unpacking the Framework to Address DNS Abuse

As the Internet has grown, so too have the abuses that go along with one of the world's most transformative technologies. For all of the positives the Internet brings, negatives like phishing, malware and child exploitation are a reality online. As of December 9, 2019, 48 registrars and registries have signed onto the "Framework to Address Abuse." This initiative was launched last month by a number of domain name registries and registrars, just prior to the ICANN meeting in Montreal. more

Encryption, Our Last Line of Defense

Encryption is fundamental to our daily life. Practically everything we do online makes use of encryption is some form. Access to our financial transactions, health records, government services, and exchanged private messages are all protected by strong encryption. Encryption is the process of changing the information in such a way as to make it unreadable by anyone except for those possessing special knowledge (usually referred to as a "key"), which allows them to change the information back to its original, readable form. more