Ten Telecom Tsunamis

The telecom industry five years from now will be unrecognizable. The creative destruction of the Internet broadly writ will be even greater than it has been in the last decade. The major telcos, the major television networks, and the major cablecos -- if they still exist at all -- will have very different revenue models than they have today. That's the good scenario... more

U.S. Expresses Concerns Over China’s Internet Regulatory Regime, In New Report

The Trump administration has criticized China on a number of trade issues in its Foreign Trade Barriers report including cloud computing restrictions, Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) and Domain Name Rules. more

IGF Preparatory Meeting: A Score Draw in Geneva

Wednesday was the open public consultation preparing for the second meeting of the Internet Governance Forum, which will take place in Rio de Janaeiro on 12th-15th November. Although the inaugural Athens meeting was widely deemed a success, having largely stayed off the dread topics of wresting control of DNS from ICANN and IP addressing from the RIRs, the usual suspects were back demanding that these topics be added to the agenda. more

Domain Names in 9 Indian Scripts to Be Added to the Root Servers by June

Internet root servers will soon allow domain name registrations in nine Indian scripts, according to Universal Acceptance Steering Group (UASG). more

IPv6 Riding the LTE Coattails

In June 2009 we mused in these columns about Long Term Evolution standing for Short Term Evolution as wireless networks started to drown in a data deluge. It is January 2012 and we keep our heads above the mobile data deluge, even if barely, thanks to a gathering avalanche of LTE networks. Even the wildest prognoses proved conservative as the GSMA was betting on a more 'managed' progression... more

New Nails in the Crypto-Anarchism Containment Coffin

Crypto-anarchism (or crypto-anarchy) is a form of anarchy accomplished through computer technology. Crypto-anarchists develop and employ their own cryptographic techniques to prevent knowledge of the information or even the identity of parties communicating over networks. The motivations vary - from just having fun and causing turmoil, to achieving perceived status within a crypto-anarchy community, to furthering socio-economic views about information availability, absolute privacy, political advocacy and spreading anti-government paranoia. more

Telesat Update – Proposal for a Larger Constellation, Canadian and DARPA Contracts, IPO and More

I've discussed Telesat's LEO broadband project in earlier posts, but the project has progressed, so an update is needed. The original plan was to launch 117 satellites but that has changed. The phase 1 constellation will now have 298 satellites and the second phase will add 1,373 for a total of 1,671. The revised plan has been submitted to the FCC, and they expect it to be approved next year. more

World IPv6 Day a Success, Demonstrated Global Readiness for IPv6, Says ISOC

"Top websites and Internet service providers around the world, including Facebook, Google, Yahoo, Akamai, and Limelight Networks, joined together with more than 1000 other participating websites in World IPv6 Day for a successful global-scale trial of the new Internet Protocol, IPv6," reports Internet Society (ISOC) in its day after news release on World IPv6 Day held on Wednesday, Jun 8. more

The Fight Over 12 GHz Spectrum

For an agency that has tried to wash its hands from regulating broadband, the FCC finds itself again trying to decide an issue that is all about broadband. There is a heavyweight battle going on at the FCC over how to use the 12 GHz spectrum, and while this may seem like a spectrum issue, it's all about broadband. 12 GHz spectrum is key to several broadband technologies. First, this is the spectrum that is best suited for transmitting data between the earth and satellite constellations. more

Preventing DNS Strain When You Deploy DNSSEC

The barriers to DNSSEC adoption are quickly disappearing. There are nearly 20 top-level domains that have already deployed DNSSEC including generic TLDs like .org and .gov. This July, the DNS root will also be signed, and will begin validating. At this point, the decision for remaining TLDs to deploy DNSSEC is really no longer a question. more

Microsoft Warns Extortion Drives Majority of Attacks Amid AI Escalation, Identity Collapse, and Global Fragmentation

Microsoft's latest Digital Defense Report reveals how cybercriminals and nation-states are rapidly adopting AI to enhance attacks. With identity-based threats soaring, the company urges urgent modernization of security systems and global cooperation. more

Federal Cybersecurity Best Practices: FISMA Continuous Monitoring

Studies have found only limited, insufficient agency adherence with FISMA's (Federal Information Security Management Act) continuous monitoring mandates. One survey found almost half of federal IT professionals were unaware of continuous monitoring requirements. A recent GAO report found that two-thirds of agencies "did not adequately monitor networks" to protect them "from intentional or unintentional harm." more

TLD Rights Protection Mechanisms

Potential trademark Rights Protection Mechanisms (RPM) at the 2nd level can be divided into three main areas -- each defined by their time relative to Top-Level Domain (TLD) launch... Of these, we believe the third, "After Launch," is the most fruitful path to explore. We believe it offers the most potential to protect the rights of trademark holders, the best balance between TM rights and the legitimate rights of others who may want to register names , and the most benefit to the trademark community at the lowest cost to them... more

Cybersecurity for Schools

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel recently asked the other FCC Commissioners to support a proposal to spend $200 million over three years to bolster school cybersecurity. Rosenworcel plans to issue a Notice for Proposed Rulemaking (NRPM) soon for her proposal. The NPRM will set off a round of public comments and then a ruling if a majority of the Commissioners agree with the final set of rule changes. more

Censorship: A Threat to the Stability and Security of the DNS?

Censorship practices by governments and other private actors are becoming more increasingly more sophisticated, and their effects are increasingly being felt globally. A case in point, the YouTube incident in Pakistan was a recent example affecting both users and the DNS at a national and global level. Likely other incidents will occur in the near future. As such, I believe censorship should be considered as a threat to the stability and security of the DNS. In the context of Internet governance discussions, I believe the issue should be raised both at ICANN and the Internet Governance forum. Do others agree? more