OK, let me clarify.  I agree ICANN is responsible for the security of
the DNS.  In that capacity, it has always been concerned with who gets
access to the system, how and when.  The ICANN contract imposes a
surprising number of conditions on the granting of domain names.  One of
the provisions in the contract with registries requires the registry to
include it its contracts with registrars certain terms and to insist
that all registrars it deals with include certain provisions in the
contracts the registrars enter with customers.  

For instance:
ICANN requires that all accredited registrars incorporate the UDRP by
reference into all registration agreements with domain name holders. 
The UDRP was established by ICANN and has been adopted by all accredited
domain name registrars of all gTLDs,  and a few domain name registrars
of country-code top-level domains (ccTLDs).  The UDRP provides that a
registrar will cancel, transfer, or make other changes to domain name
registrations upon receipt of a court order. The relevant provision
provides:

"3. Cancellations, Transfers, and Changes. We will cancel, transfer or
otherwise make changes to domain name registrations under the following
circumstances:
. . . .
b. our receipt of an order from a court or arbitral tribunal, in each
case of competent jurisdiction, requiring such action; and/or
c. our receipt of a decision of an Administrative Panel requiring such
action in any administrative proceeding to which you were a party and
which was conducted under this Policy or a later version of this Policy
adopted by ICANN. . . . "

The policy is incorporated by reference into the registration agreement
between a registrar and a domain name holder.  In other words, “we”
in the quote above refers to the registrar and “you” refers to the
domain name holder. ICANN is not a party to this contract. 


Cheryl B. Preston
Edwin M. Thomas
Professor of Law
J. Reuben Clark Law School
Brigham Young University
424 JRCB
Provo, UT 84602
(801) 422-2312
[log in to unmask]

>>> Milton L Mueller <[log in to unmask]> 5/30/2008 12:48 pm >>>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Non-Commercial User Constituency 
> Also, you state that this is out of ICANN's scope.  Since 
> ICANN controls the granting of granting of domain names and 
> is responsible for the security of the Internet, why wouldn't 

Whoa. ICANN does not control the granting of all domain names, it
coordinates the assignment of top level domains and the management of
the root zone file. As an extension of that power, it imposes some
contractual obligations on domain name registries. But not on hosting
services per se. 

Also, to say that ICANN is "responsible for the security of the
Internet" is a vast overstatement. It is responsible for the security
of
DNS. That's all.