Ransomware Crisis in U.S. Healthcare

A significant ransomware attack by a group known as AlphV or BlackCat has severely disrupted pharmacies across the U.S., affecting the delivery of prescription medications for over ten days. This attack on Change Healthcare has resulted in considerable difficulties for hospital pharmacies and nationwide drug distribution. more

CENTR Releases 2024 TLD Insights

The CENTR Global TLD Report 2024 highlights a modest growth in registered domains across the EU, with a notable increase in Poland, France, and Italy, primarily through their national ccTLDs. more

ICANN’s Registration Data Request Service: Open Working Session at ICANN79

Last November, ICANN launched a ticketing system for those interested in obtaining domain name registration data ("WHOIS"). Titled Registration Data Request Service, or RDRS, the portal aims to direct requests for WHOIS data to participating registrars, who then decide whether or not to disclose the data. more

Are You Prepared for a New Turkish Delight? .TR Domain Name to Be Released

In the last year, the company that runs the Turkish Domain Registry has made many changes to how the extension is run. First, it has a brand new portal for registrars to interact with, liberalizing the extension .COM.TR, so registrants are no longer required to meet local presence rules, and it has launched a new dispute process to help brand holders recover domain names.  more

6G Collaboration by U.S. and Allies Against Authoritarian Control

The United States, along with key global partners, has formally committed to principles guiding the development of 6G technology, as announced by the White House. This move comes amidst a strategic contest to shape the future of wireless communication standards, driven by concerns over authoritarian regimes exerting greater control over the internet within their borders. more

Houthis Blamed for Disrupting Asia-Europe Communications by Damaging Underwater Cables

A series of underwater communications cables connecting Saudi Arabia and Djibouti have been rendered inoperative, an incident attributed to the actions of Yemen's Houthi rebels. This revelation comes from an exclusive report by the Israeli news outlet, Globes. more

China’s Satellite Internet Ambitions: A Quest to Rival SpaceX

China launched a notable 67 commercial rockets in a single year, marking a significant effort to catch up with the United States, which led with 116 launches, primarily for SpaceX's Starlink project. more

CENTR Releases Paper on Why We Need Multistakeholder Internet Governance

In a recently released paper by the Council of European National Top-level Domain Registries (CENTR), authored in collaboration with Chris Buckridge, the spotlight is once again on the multistakeholder approach to Internet governance. more

Civilian Tech Mobilization in Ukraine

As was the case in the US during World War II, civilian volunteers are making important contributions to the Ukrainian war effort. On February 8, 2022, the first truckload of Starlink terminals arrived in Kyiv. A week later they were being used. By April 2022, there were 5,000 terminals in Ukraine, and 42,000 as of April 2023. (At this point, SpaceX and Ukraine have gone silent. Neither ChatGPT4, Gemini, Copilot, Perplexity, nor I could not find a current terminal count). more

Global Law Enforcement Strikes Major Blow Against LockBit Ransomware Operation

In a significant global operation, law enforcement agencies from 10 countries have severely disrupted the LockBit ransomware group, recognized as the most prolific and harmful cyber threat worldwide. more

Widespread Network Outages Disrupt AT&T Services Across the US

In a significant service disruption early Thursday, AT&T's network experienced widespread outages, affecting cellular service and internet connectivity for users across the United States. According to the tracking site Downdetector, the issues began around 4 a.m. ET, with over 32,000 reports of outages, which surged to more than 71,000 by 8 a.m. ET. more

Digital Governance Discussion Group (DGDG): One World, One Internet, Many Voices

On February 12–13, 2024, the first round of the final consultations for a Global Digital Compact (GDC) took place online and offline at the UN Headquarters in New York City. Around 50 governments and 50 speakers from non-governmental institutions took the floor. It was not really a dialog; it was a formal presentation of three-minute statements. more

GAC Communiqués and Community Activity on DNS Abuse

This blog post and the associated report aim to provide an overview of DNS Abuse 1related issues the Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC), part of the ICANN multi-stakeholder model, has identified. We also summarize the relevant community activity taking place to address these areas of interest and highlight remaining gaps. From 2016 to June 2023, the GAC referenced four primary categories of activity related to DNS Abuse. more

UN Treaty Threatens Cybersecurity, Warns Google

As governments convene to discuss the UN Cybercrime Treaty, Google is urging caution, warning that the current draft could endanger online security and free expression.  more

U.S. Implements New Visa Restrictions to Combat Commercial Spyware Abuse

The U.S. has introduced a new visa restriction policy targeting individuals implicated in the misuse of commercial spyware. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that these restrictions would apply to those involved in, facilitating, or benefiting from the abuse of such technology. more