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New DNS Abuse Institute Tackles Malicious Activity

2 points by afrcnc 6y ago

gbunton 6y ago
I'm the Director of the new DNS Abuse Institute and happy to answer questions about it, the DNS, ICANN, domains, etc.
- Dracophoenix 6y ago
  1) What opinions do you have on encrypted DNS solutions (i.e. DOH, Anonymized DNSCrypt), Othernets (i.e I2P, Tor) and their effectiveness with regard to end user security/privacy? Do you foresee any technical weaknesses in these systems that can and should be addressed? 2) With a surge in decentralized solutions (Mastodon, Ethereum), how do you think institutions like ICANN, IANA, or the DNS registry are evaluating there place in a future where a central authority will become less relevant to getting people online? 3) Besides weak passwords, credential stuffing, and ransomware, what are the major online security issues that don't seem to get enough attention but might have the potential to become Solarwind-level issues if not properly addressed? 4) How do ICANN and domain name registries regard freedom of speech and to what end? Regardless of what one might of think of Parler or legal arguments of Amazon's right to pull the plug on the former, what prevents someone from being booted off the net at the domain-name or IP-space level?
  - gbunton 6y ago
    Hey thanks for the Qs. Full disclosure, I'm not a security professional, more of a "make things happen in the DNS professional" but will answer as best I can. 1) I think DOH and the relatively recently announced ODOH are good for user privacy. I have real concerns about the concentration of that data in a few browsers (though ODOH helps that), and I have real concerns that IP interests are going to begin going after DNS resolvers not just for user data, but to prevent resolution. Like, what happens when someone sues Google for resolving Pirate Bay through chrome. Does the Pirate Bay just stop existing for people in that browser? 2) I think the DNS and its institutions (ICANN, IANA, etc) are going to be around for quite a while yet. Both blockchain and the DNS are methods of maintaining global uniqueness, and while there is LOTS of clunkiness and weird legacy choices in the DNS, it's so embedded in how everything from protocols to hardware work that migrating away from it is a decades long project. 3) Our focus at the DNS Abuse Institute is going to be on Phishing, Malware, Botnets, and Pharming. The volume of phishing and malware, and how they impact individuals sure feels like it adds up to something like Solarwinds. These things cause a LOT of harm and erode trust. 4) The answer to this is long, complicated, and contextual. Most Registrars and Registries are very averse to addressing issues of content at the DNS layer, with the exception of some universally illegal things like CSAM. There is however a growing awareness that Governments aren't capable of regulating in the way that they probably should. Most Registrar terms of service are going to let them do whatever they want, and there really isn't anything in their contracts with ICANN that's going to prevent that. Registrant protections is a topic we're likely to address at the DNS Abuse Institute, but around technical abuse issues, and not transgressive content issues.
- rdeibert 6y ago
  Congrats Graeme and good luck!

2 points by afrcnc 6y ago

gbunton 6y ago

I'm the Director of the new DNS Abuse Institute and happy to answer questions about it, the DNS, ICANN, domains, etc.

Dracophoenix 6y ago
1) What opinions do you have on encrypted DNS solutions (i.e. DOH, Anonymized DNSCrypt), Othernets (i.e I2P, Tor) and their effectiveness with regard to end user security/privacy? Do you foresee any technical weaknesses in these systems that can and should be addressed? 2) With a surge in decentralized solutions (Mastodon, Ethereum), how do you think institutions like ICANN, IANA, or the DNS registry are evaluating there place in a future where a central authority will become less relevant to getting people online? 3) Besides weak passwords, credential stuffing, and ransomware, what are the major online security issues that don't seem to get enough attention but might have the potential to become Solarwind-level issues if not properly addressed? 4) How do ICANN and domain name registries regard freedom of speech and to what end? Regardless of what one might of think of Parler or legal arguments of Amazon's right to pull the plug on the former, what prevents someone from being booted off the net at the domain-name or IP-space level?
- gbunton 6y ago
  Hey thanks for the Qs. Full disclosure, I'm not a security professional, more of a "make things happen in the DNS professional" but will answer as best I can. 1) I think DOH and the relatively recently announced ODOH are good for user privacy. I have real concerns about the concentration of that data in a few browsers (though ODOH helps that), and I have real concerns that IP interests are going to begin going after DNS resolvers not just for user data, but to prevent resolution. Like, what happens when someone sues Google for resolving Pirate Bay through chrome. Does the Pirate Bay just stop existing for people in that browser? 2) I think the DNS and its institutions (ICANN, IANA, etc) are going to be around for quite a while yet. Both blockchain and the DNS are methods of maintaining global uniqueness, and while there is LOTS of clunkiness and weird legacy choices in the DNS, it's so embedded in how everything from protocols to hardware work that migrating away from it is a decades long project. 3) Our focus at the DNS Abuse Institute is going to be on Phishing, Malware, Botnets, and Pharming. The volume of phishing and malware, and how they impact individuals sure feels like it adds up to something like Solarwinds. These things cause a LOT of harm and erode trust. 4) The answer to this is long, complicated, and contextual. Most Registrars and Registries are very averse to addressing issues of content at the DNS layer, with the exception of some universally illegal things like CSAM. There is however a growing awareness that Governments aren't capable of regulating in the way that they probably should. Most Registrar terms of service are going to let them do whatever they want, and there really isn't anything in their contracts with ICANN that's going to prevent that. Registrant protections is a topic we're likely to address at the DNS Abuse Institute, but around technical abuse issues, and not transgressive content issues.
rdeibert 6y ago
Congrats Graeme and good luck!