Re: [registrars] Proposed Agenda for Marina del Rey Constituency meeting

["Paul M. Kane" <Paul.Kane@REACTO.com>]

In light of Dan's email focusing on security issues, it may be helpful to
members of the Registrar Constituency to review ISO 17799 - a British Standard I
was involved in writing a few years ago discussing Security Issues in the
Digital Age.  see http://www.SecurityIssues.ac

Best

Paul

Dan Halloran wrote:

> Rick,
>
> Thanks for posting the proposed agenda for the registrars constituency
> meeting on Monday, November 12.  I'm glad that we were able to arrange a
> full day for the constituency meeting since there are a number of important
> issues on the constituency's plate.  In response to several questions I've
> received, I'd like to supplement your posting with some additional details
> about the special focus on "Security and Stability of the Internet Naming
> and Address Allocation Systems" that is planned for the remainder of the
> week's meetings.
>
> A bit of background may help explain why the November meeting was re-focused
> in the wake of 11 September.  As most of you already know, ICANN's primary
> responsibility is ensuring the stability of the Internet's naming and
> numbering systems.  The "White Paper"
> <http://www.icann.org/general/white-paper-05jun98.htm>, based on which ICANN
> was founded, lists the first guiding principle of the new DNS management
> system as "1. Stability: The U.S. Government should end its role in the
> Internet number and name address system in a manner that ensures the
> stability of the Internet. The introduction of a new management system
> should not disrupt current operations or create competing root systems.
> During the transition and thereafter, the stability of the Internet should
> be the first priority of any DNS management system. Security and reliability
> of the DNS are important aspects of stability, and as a new DNS management
> system is introduced, a comprehensive security strategy should be
> developed."
>
> In light of this mandate, made urgent by the public's concern about
> terrorism, ICANN is dedicating its November meeting to an in-depth
> examination of security requirements related to the Internet's domain name
> and address allocation systems, the extent to which these requirements are
> currently being met, and what individual, organizational and/or collective
> actions are needed to create a security environment for the domain name and
> address allocation systems that reasonably assures their continued operation
> under, and recovery from emergency conditions.  More specifically, the
> meeting will seek to: (a) improve the knowledge base and heighten awareness
> about DNS security by ICANN constituents and the broader public, (b) develop
> and adopt suggestions for security improvements by all DNS service
> providers, including registries, registrars, and nameserver operators, (c)
> develop recommendations to the ICANN Board for any near-term actions by
> ICANN that may be advisable, and (d) launch continuing efforts to assess and
> improve security and readiness across the defined scope of ICANN's
> activities and communities.  (Note that these goals are tightly focused on
> the DNS and its component service providers -- the registries, registrars,
> name server operators, etc.  General network security for the Internet is
> outside the scope of ICANN's mandate.  Technical standards for security, for
> example, are up to e.g. the IETF to develop.)
>
> ICANN Accredited Registrars are central to the stable operation of the
> Internet's domain name system.  Although I'm reluctant to single any
> particular companies out just because a particular incident received
> publicity, I think it would be helpful for all registrars to review the
> following news stories about registrars that have experienced DNS-related
> security incidents:
> <http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/archive/21689.html> and
> <http://sa.internet.com/InternetNews/intarc/01/01/30.htm>.  Again, these are
> just examples (and they don't necessarily represent the full breadth of
> potential problems), but I think it's fair to say that these kinds of
> incidents make it reasonable for people to ask whether the registrars as a
> group are doing everything they can to protect the integrity of the DNS
> within the scope of their operations.  While no registrar is a single point
> of failure for the DNS (in fact that's one of the architectural strengths of
> the Internet), each registrar is potentially a single point of failure for
> its own customers.
>
> Please be sure to review the "Update" on the meeting that was just posted at
> <http://www.icann.org/announcements/update-21oct01.htm>.  (**All attendees
> will need to pre-register for this meeting, at
> <http://register.icann.org/register.php>.**)  The Update also provides
> information about the security/stability schedule and agenda.  For complete
> details, please see <http://www.icann.org/mdr2001/schedule.htm>.  Here's a
> brief overview of the schedule:
>
> 12 November 2001 (Monday)
>    - Non-security-focused meetings of ICANN's
>      various constituent organizations
>    - Public forum on ICANN At Large
>
> 13 November 2001 (Tuesday)
>    - Keynote speakers
>    - Plenary panels
>    - Break-out sessions for all attendees
>
> 14 November 2001 (Wednesday)
>    - Parallel sessions
>         - Tutorials
>         - Workshops
>    - Constituent-focused working meetings for
>      registries, registrars, ISPs, etc.
>
> 15 November 2001 (Thursday)
>    - ICANN Public Forum on DNS security/stability
>         - Reporting session
>         - Open Mike
>         - ICANN Board meeting
>    - Open Mike on all other matters
>    - ICANN Board meeting on other matters
>
> An informal program committee <http://www.icann.org/mdr2001/program.htm> has
> been set up to plan the meeting's schedule and agenda.  The registrars are
> represented on the committee by Elliot Noss of Tucows.
>
> One important topic for registrar review and discussion will be Registrar
> Data Escrow.  When operational, the escrow program will assure the stability
> of gTLD registrations by preserving domain registration information and
> continuing registrar services even in the case of total failure of a
> registrar or its data storage systems -- thereby increasing consumer
> confidence in the gTLD shared registry architecture.  ICANN and the
> registrars need to finalize the terms of an agreement concerning the
> potential uses, release conditions, and rights to the registration data to
> be escrowed.  Also, ICANN needs to specify the schedule, terms and format
> for registrar submission of this data.  The specification for the format of
> the escrowed data was created by a committee that included technical experts
> from the Registrars Constituency.  Very shortly ICANN will post for review
> and comment a draft "Registrar Data Escrow Appendix" (to the Registrar
> Accreditation Agreement.) This appendix will set forth the proposed deposit
> contents and procedure, data security provisions, release conditions,
> right-to-use terms, and the license for a new ICANN Data Escrow Program
> logo.
>
> If you have any other suggestions for topics, speakers or panelists on DNS
> security/stability, please forward them to Elliot Noss or
> <meeting@icann.org>.
>
> Thank you very much for your attention.
>
> Best regards,
> Dan Halloran
> Chief Registrar Liaison
> ICANN
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-registrars@dnso.org [mailto:owner-registrars@dnso.org]On
> Behalf Of Rick H Wesson
> Sent: 23 October, 2001 10:43 AM
> To: Registrars List
> Subject: [registrars] Proposed Agenda for Marina del Rey Constituency
> meeting
>
> Registrars:
>
> Below you will find the proposed agenda for the registrars meeting. If
> there is an issue you wish to have put on the agenda please comment.
>
> Be prepared for a long day.
>
> Monday November 12th 2001
> ==========================
>
>   0830 to 1200
>     o intro and agenda bash
>     o deletes
>     o transfers / nc transfers task force
>     o whois
>     o below $6 pricing
>     o annual report / budget
>
>   1200 to 1330
>     o lunch
>
>   1330 to 1730
>     o nc elections/nominations
>     o nc reports
>     o icann restructuring
>     o epp
>     o idn
>     o Q1 registrars meeting
>     o open mike
>
> -rick