[IP] Re: ICANN proposes new way to buy top-level domains - Network World

[David Farber <dave@farber.net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Rich Kulawiec <rsk@gsp.org>
Date: October 30, 2008 10:04:59 AM EDT
To: David Farber <dave@farber.net>
Subject: Re: [IP] Re:   ICANN proposes new way to buy top-level  
domains - Network World


The most likely outcome of this process is that TLDs will be created
based on whoever has the deepest pockets and most desire to use domains
en masse.

At the top of the qualification list for that are spammers.  Spammers
create, use, discard and effectively render useless domains by the  
hundreds
of thousands.  (Note the recent, years-overdue ICANN action against  
dedicated
spam supporting registrar Estdomains, which is responsible for something
on the order of a quarter million spammer domains.  And this is just one
example among dozens.)

Right behind them are phishers, who will attempt to exploit user  
confusion
over domain names, e.g., "first-national-bank.com.abcde" is likely to  
fool
quite a few people.  They'll target any domain involving money, personal
information, or potentially-useful authentication credentials.

And right behind them are registrars who hope to coerce as much  
"defensive
spending" as possible out of everyone with a well-known .com, .net  
or .org
domain in order to prevent the registration of ibm.abcde or google.abcde
or princeton.abcde and its subsequent use for spamming, phishing,  
redirection,
abusive search engine manipulation, etc.

We don't need more TLDs.  What we need ICANN to do instead is to shut  
down
the dozens of registrars operated by spammers/phishers.

I'm not holding my breath.

---Rsk




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