Webupon

As unknown by many people, the California-based NGO, ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) is what assigns and approves domain names for internet sites. In other words, instead of having to type a complex numeric pattern into a search bar, one can simply type “google.com” (for example).

However, there is a great deal of controversy surrounding this group. For one, although based in California, its administration services span the globe. They are the ones who mark sites for the nations and governments (.ca for Canada, .uk for United Kingdom, etc.), as such, their database holds, virtually, the wealth of everything ever posted on the internet. However, this also means that, essentially, this company controls the internet. It can make domain names invalid, or funnel traffic from one site, to another.

In November of 2005 there was a conference of the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunisia, where there was speculation of a UN take-over of ICANN’s duties. Apparently many nations felt insecure about the United States housing ICANN and, by proxy, “controlling the internet”. The fear is somewhat rational, however. The US government does have the authority to assume the duties of ICANN, and if it were to do so, it could do any number of things. As stated in an article titled “Who Controls the Internet?”: “Other countries have every right to be suspicious. If it wanted, the U.S. government could take over ICANN and block Internet traffic to a nation that harbors terrorists. It could access the databases that house domain names and use the information to take down computers serving up anti-American rhetoric or locate state enemies”. Although the UN opted not to take on ICANN’s role, it did establish an international Internet Governance Forum, which provides advice to ICANN on public policy.

In 2007, however, ICANN hit some administrative pitfalls that resulted in public backlash and questioning of ICANN policies. For one, although not as grand an issue, ICANN rejected the .xxx suffix, which would have been used to mark sites containing pornographic content. Originally conceived as a way to prevent pornographic content from being accessed (either on purpose or accidentally) by children or people in their workplace, the .xxx suffix had many issues since its suggestion. Many right wing, conservative, or religious groups believed that this inadvertently legitimized pornography. From the other side, however, there was a fear that this would lead to legislation making such a suffix (or its suggested partner, .sex) mandatory. Taking into account the opposing beliefs, ICANN rejected the idea. The major problem that surrounded this debate was the fact that ICANN, an NGO by its own definition, was easily manipulated and swayed by the American government.

Another issue faced by ICANN was the RegisterFly debate. RegisterFly essentially issued domain names to small businesses and companies, however, it encountered various legal and financial issues. To make a complex situation simple: various RegisterFly clients had filed complaints to ICANN about RegisterFly, regarding fraud. ICANN launched minor investigations which resulted in lawsuits between RegisterFly’s owners. Essentially, ICANN did very little about the situation, and was accused of “laissez faire attitude toward customer allegations of fraud”. Some of RegisterFly’s clients included the government of Thailand and the estate of Michael Jackson.

People rarely hear of ICANN. As personal proof, despite the ICANN debates that occurred over the past 2 or 3 years, I had not heard of them until this paper. Although difficult to admit, the reason people don’t know about NGOs such as ICANN, and the power they hold over something so commonplace is simple ignorance. No one really thinks over how the internet is controlled and how websites are created (despite the fact that such information is obviously available on the internet). This frame of mind is not unlike that of a man living in the renaissance. He may breathe air, but he never wonders why he has to, or where air even comes from.