Should we wait for CNN headlines about DNS insecurity before taking action?

Most Internet users rely on the domain name system (DNS) and navigation to find the resources they seek or to attract users to the resources they provide. The system has worked well for over two decades but a number of security and governance challenges need to be addressed if it is to meet future challenges from hackers and be capable of accommodating Internet growth, according to a new report to be published by the Washington DC-based National Academies Research Council*.

SITA presents .aero renewal plans to ICANN – update

On December 16, 2005, SITA submitted its renewal proposal to ICANN and confirmed its commitment to act as sponsor of the .aero TLD. SITA believes that its continued sponsorship would be in the best interest of the Sponsored TLD Community.

SITA's Voice Exchange and .aero

The imminent introduction of the SITA Voice Exchange will add a further incentive to customers to move towards convergence of voice and data. The technology at last brings together the strengths of IP VPN, the public switched telephone network (PSTN) and the Internet – and it originated in the early development work of the .aero team.

The benefits of convergence are increasingly well understood.

The advent of a predictable resourse

In June, with the full support of ICANN, SITA activated all remaining two/three letter industry codes within the .aero domain. More than 40 airlines and 200 airports are already using www.(industrycode).aero.

The next step has now been taken, with the development of a programme designed to link those .aero domains to airline/airport corporate websites. This is a fast entry alternative for those who know the code and like using a "system" that is predictable and works across a variety of situations.

The challenge set by RFID community services

RFID (radio frequency identification devices) technology can bring substantial benefits to the Air Transport Community in the form of cost reductions, improvements in productivity, customer services and safety, but also as a means to generate new revenues. As an emerging technology there are still many barriers to community-wide adoption, one of them being the risk associated with the deployment of RFID infrastructure and development of applications. This is a risk that can be substantially reduced through the introduction of a shared infrastructure and service.

The man who invented the Domain Name System talks to .aero

Paul Mockapetris is one of the visionaries who developed the nuts and bolts of the Internet. In an interview with the .aero team, Dr Mockapetris talked about his work – and the way it is continuing to reshape the Internet universe.

Having participated in the development of SMTP e-mail system (the vital element that allows e-mail to be sent between different computers), in 1983 he turned to another key element – the need for a globally distributed human-friendly database of IP addresses. The result was the Domain Name System (DNS).

What is Enum?

One of the principle elements of a future voice over Internet (VoIP) world is called the Enumbering, or Enum, initiative. Simplistically, it is a means of mapping phone numbers to Internet addresses, in the same way that domain names are mapped via the domain naming system (DNS).

It will enable networks to know where you can best be contacted, so re-routing calls as necessary via fixed line, mobile, Web etc – or even to translate a phone call into a voice message and attach it to an e-mail for forwarding.

What registrants are saying about .aero

Our Geneva-based team recently conducted a telephone survey of .aero domain name holders who had not renewed their registrations. As Elena Vladkova explained, the principal reason was a simple breakdown of communication between the registrar and their registrant.

We also took the opportunity of asking a number of general questions over the registrants' experience of .aero. Briefly, their responses were as follows: