A new recourse mechanism for registrants whose domains have been disabled for alleged abuse has been introduced by Public Interest Registry (PIR), manager of .org, one of the largest Domain Name Registries on the internet. The development of PIR’s appeals process is consistent with the recommendation of the Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network (I&JPN) for a formal appeal process for registries and registrars set forth in the Operational Approaches document (released ahead of the 3rd Global Conference of the Policy Network in Berlin in 2019), as well as the findings of a human rights assessment conducted by the Danish Institute on Human Rights and Article 19.
The announcement of this new mechanism references the work of the Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network, the multistakeholder organization dedicated to fostering legal interoperability in cyberspace. Its stakeholders work together to preserve the cross-border nature of the internet, protect human rights, fight abuses, and enable the global digital economy. Founded in 2012, the Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network engages more than 300 key entities from six stakeholder groups around the world.
PIR is a not-for-profit organization created by the Internet Society (ISOC) to manage the .ORG domain. PIR’s Vice President and General Counsel Brian Cimbolic is the Coordinator of the I&JPN Domains & Jurisdiction Contact Group.
A key tenet of the PIR initiative is to provide registrants with additional due process by allowing for review of its internal technical abuse decisions by a neutral third party. The initiative does not represent an expansion of PIR’s technical abuse program. Rather, it affords registrants an additional avenue of appeal after they have asked the registry to conduct an internal review of its decision and it was not reversed.
“This is a very commendable initiative by PIR, that sets an example towards greater accountability of DNS Operators and offers improved redress opportunities for domain name registrants. PIR’s participation within the I&JPN Domains & Jurisdiction Contact Group has contributed greatly toward advancing policy coherence and interoperable solutions within the domain name industry. We congratulate PIR and look forward to continuing to work with them and other responsible actors toward a free, open, and trusted internet” said Bertrand de La Chapelle, Executive Director, Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network.
The I&JPN Domains & Jurisdiction Contact Group includes 30 senior-level global key actors from governments, internet companies, technical operators, civil society, leading universities, and international organizations, who work together to develop resources to equip DNS operators and technical abuse notifiers with the tools and procedures they need to responsibly address technical abuse at the DNS level. The Group has developed a number of new Outcomes in 2020.
Read more about the new PIR Appeals Process here
Read more about the Domains & Jurisdiction Program Outcomes here
Read the Domains & Jurisdiction Program Operational Approaches document here
Public Interest Registry implements I&JPN recommendation with new Appeals Process
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