IT Security Guide: “Financial Impact of Cyber Risk” Released by ANSI and ISA

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the Internet Security Alliance (ISA) released today a new action guide to assist business executives in the analysis, management and transfer of financial risk related to a cyber attack. In 2004, the Congressional Research Service estimated the annual economic impact of cyber attacks on businesses -- which can come from internal networks, the Internet or other private or public systems -- to be more than $226 billion. In 2008, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff named cyber risks one of the nation's top four priority security issues. more

Would You Like Your Private Information to be Available on a VHS or Betamax Tape?

When I was a young child growing up in the late 1980s, my parents were lucky enough to be able to afford to have both a VHS-tape video-recorder in the living room and a Betamax tape recorder in their bedroom. This effectively meant that to me, the great video format wars weren't a decade-defining clash of technologies, but rather they consisted mainly of answering the question "in which room can I watch my favorite cartoons?". more

National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) Cautions ICANN on .INC, .LLC, .LLP, .CORP TLDs

Michael Berkens reporting in TheDomains.com blog reports: National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) is an organization whose members include Secretaries of State and Lieutenant Governors of the 50 U.S. states and territories send a letter to ICANN in late July that was just published today, that the new gTLD's .INC, .LLC, .CORP and .LLP.should only be allowed to be registered by 'entities that are appropriately registered and in good-standing with the Secretary of State or other appropriate state agency." more

Dozens of U.S. Government Websites Rendered Either Insecure or Inaccessible Amid Government Shutdown

Dozens of U.S. government websites have become insecure or inaccessible during the ongoing U.S. federal shutdown. more

High-Bid Auctions Deflate the .nyc TLD

Our hope for an intuitive and trusted .nyc TLD took a hit today when 20 domain names were sold to 10 bidders in city's first high-bid auction. While the city refers to these as "premium" names, we think of them as heritage names. With our city-TLD's success predicated on its utility and predictability, this first of perhaps 25 auctions bodes poorly on its chances. More on that in a bit, but first some details on the auction. more

Trump to Sign Cybersecurity Executive Order on Tuesday

President Donald Trump expected to sign an executive order on cyber security on Tuesday. more

Interstate at Rush Hour ...in the Rain ...on a Friday – AKA, Your Enterprise Traffic on the Net

Congestion. Traffic. Two words that draw a visceral response, whether you are commuting to work or managing a network. Managing data traffic used to be easy. Everything was housed in centralized data centers, and all traffic was routed through big, dedicated, effective but expensive "pipes" -- Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) links. When all the applications are at the data center, it makes sense to build private access for all traffic. more

U.S. Justice Department Forms Group to Study National Security Threats of IoT

"The U.S. Justice Department has formed a threat analysis team to study potential national security challenges posed by self-driving cars, medical devices and other Internet-connected tools," reports Dustin Volz from Washington in Reuters" more

NY Tech Companies Visit FCC to Express Net Neutrality Concerns

On Friday, May 2, 2014, representatives of the companies Kickstarter, Meetup, and Tumblr, along with representatives of the New York City Tech Meetup and Engine Advocacy, met with FCC staff to express their strong opposition to the FCC Chairman's draft proposal concerning network neutrality... "While the Chairman's proposal may look good on paper, it provides no certainty or effective remedy for smaller entrepreneurs building real businesses on the internet." more

Proposal Aims to End US Control of ICANN

A proposal involving removal of root zone management functions from ICANN and creating an independent and neutral private sector consortium is to be presented at the Singapore ICANN meeting March 21, and then formally submitted to the "NETMundial" Global Multistakeholder Meeting on the Future of Internet Governance in SaoPaulo, Brazil. more

Fixing the Supply Chain

Almost everybody in the broadband industry is now aware that the industry is suffering supply chain issues. ISPs are having problems obtaining many of the components needed to build a fiber network in a timely manner, which is causing havoc with fiber construction projects. I've been doing a lot of investigation into supply chain issues, and it turns out the supply chain is a lot more complex than I ever suspected, which means it's not going to be easy to get the supply chain back to normal. more

The Next International Policy Battlefield Will Be ICT Policy

I am currently in Hyderabad, attending the Internet Governance Forum, IGF. With hours before the official opening, it might be worth reflecting a bit on Internet Governance and the general discussion on the role of international policy and ICT (information and communication technologies). I have several times before said, and written, that the real difference that governments could make (assuming that Governance is in relation to Governing) in Internet policy is close to their traditional roles.  more

The Internet’s Legitimacy Gap: When Governance Outgrew Its Architecture

Internet governance is shifting from participatory forums to security-driven mandates. As authority accelerates ahead of legitimacy, technical systems face growing instability and operators absorb the risks of politically motivated control. more

It’s Time for a Better Vision of Internet Governance: From Multistakeholderism to Citizenship

We are experiencing a time of global challenges. How to mitigate global warming, fight a global pandemic, and prevent the spread of totalitarianism and war, are just some of the most urgent questions. Digital technologies offer us the tools to unite and face these challenges, instead, we have experienced the deterioration of the Internet into a Splinternet. Is Multistakeholderism, the currently dominant guiding principle of Internet Governance, still up to the task? more

.IN ccTLD Poised for Significant Growth After Registry Transition to Neustar

Last week marked a significant milestone for the Neustar Registry team. After many months of preparation, we announced the successful migration of the .IN ccTLD onto Neustar's Registry platform. From now onwards, we'll be partnering with the National Exchange of India (NIXI) as the new Technical Services Provider for India's .IN domain. more