ICANN NAMES THREE INDEPENDENT OBJECTORS TO REVIEW 2026 NEW GTLD APPLICATIONS — The team can challenge proposed domain extensions on public-interest and community grounds without representing a particular party. Its objection window opens November 17. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/icann-nam…

CARIBNOG SHIELD: BUILDING THE CARIBBEAN’S HUMAN SECURITY LAYER — A new regional initiative puts technical skills and trusted relationships at the center of Internet security. With government backing, CaribNOG SHIELD plans to begin internships in St Kitts and Nevis in 2027. by Gerard Best circleid.com/posts/caribnog-…

RIPE NCC FREEZES INTERNET NUMBER RESOURCES UNDER EU SANCTIONS, BUT ROUTING REMAINS UNAFFECTED — RIPE NCC reports new sanctions-related freezes affecting 28 entities. The restrictions prevent resource transfers and new allocations but do not themselves disconnect networks or withdraw BGP routes. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/ripe-ncc-…

THIRD-LEVEL .NAME REGISTRATIONS AND EMAIL FORWARDING TO BE DISCONTINUED IN 2027 — After nearly 25 years, .name users face losing longstanding web and email addresses as Verisign prepares to retire services once marketed as permanent. by Daniel R. Tobias circleid.com/posts/third-lev…

BLIND TEST REVEALS DOMAIN CLASSIFICATION LIMITS — A blind comparison of 340 domains found 91.5% precision but just 58.1% recall for operator-aligned names, raising questions about earlier namespace composition estimates. by Mohd Hashim circleid.com/posts/testing-t…

TECHNOLOGY ADVANCES THAT COULD TRANSFORM THE BROADBAND INDUSTRY — Four research developments span sub-nanometer chips, 450-terabit fiber transmission, light-based quantum computing and WiFi sensing that can identify people without cameras, raising questions about performance, energy efficiency and privacy. by Doug Dawson: circleid.com/posts/technolog…

UK PROPOSES TOUGHER UNDERSEA CABLE SECURITY LAWS AND EMERGENCY INTERVENTION POWERS — Proposed legislation would require stronger safeguards for subsea cables carrying international Internet traffic, with new penalties and powers to direct operators and repair companies during national security incidents. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/icann-boa…

ICANN BOARD APPROVES IDN COUNTRY-CODE DOMAIN POLICY, REJECTS RISK-APPRAISAL PROVISIONS — ICANN has approved most of a new framework for multilingual country-code domains but rejected a risk-review mechanism over DNS stability concerns. The ccNSO must now consider the disputed provisions. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/icann-boa…

DNIB REPORTS 411.6 MILLION DOMAIN NAME REGISTRATIONS IN Q3 2026 — The third quarter of 2026 closed with 411.6 million domain name registrations across all top-level domains (TLDs), an increase of 33.0 million domain name registrations compared to the third quarter of 2025, according to the latest issue of DNIB.com Quarterly Report released Thursday. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/dnib-repo…

PHP RELEASES EMERGENCY SECURITY PATCHES AS RESEARCHERS REPORT EXPLOIT ATTEMPTS — Two critical PHP vulnerabilities could allow unauthenticated remote code execution across web-serving installations. Researchers report attack attempts, but they have not confirmed any successful compromises. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/php-relea…

THE DOMAIN TRUST BADGE: MAKING ANTI-ABUSE WORK VISIBLE — A new industry-led pilot aims to recognize effective anti-abuse practices among domain registries and registrars. Its 17 requirements and performance metric are being tested ahead of a planned 2027 launch. by Alejandro Fernández-Cernuda Díaz / Read more: circleid.com/posts/the-domai…

PAKISTAN'S .PK IS NOW DNSSEC-SIGNED, BUT ONLY ONE DOMAIN VALIDATES — An October scan found 1,230 signed .pk domains without the parent DS records needed for validation. The next challenge is connecting those domains to the DNSSEC chain of trust. by Muhammad Shahzaib circleid.com/posts/pakistans…

ACCESS NOW DOCUMENTS YEARS-LONG INTERNET SHUTDOWNS ACROSS CONFLICT REGIONS — Internet shutdowns can persist long after initial restrictions. Access Now examines prolonged disconnections in conflict-affected regions and the challenges of restoring meaningful connectivity. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/access-no…

THE DOMAIN INDUSTRY'S NEXT GROWTH PHASE IS ABOUT VALUE, NOT VOLUME — With global registrations approaching 387 million, the Global Domain Report 2026 points to a maturing market. The next measure of success may be how domains are used and the lasting value they create. Hello Registry / Learn more: circleid.com/posts/the-domai…

WHAT ICANN’S CONTENTION SETS REVEAL ABOUT NEW GTLD VALUES — Thirteen applicants competed for .app, yet .web fetched more than five times its auction price. What does that reveal about today's contested extensions? by Imteaz Chowdhury circleid.com/posts/what-ican…

REGISTRATION OPENS FOR THE 2026 .US TOWN HALL FEATURING INTERNET POLICY PIONEER KAREN ROSE — The November 5 virtual event will feature Karen Rose, who helped shape the 1998 US domain name policy framework, alongside discussions on namespace security, governance and community priorities. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/registrat…

LONDON RANKS LAST AMONG 18 EUROPEAN CAPITALS FOR MOBILE DOWNLOAD SPEEDS, OOKLA FINDS — London's median mobile download speed reached 109.43 Mbps in Q3 2026. Ookla's findings highlight growing congestion, high latency and infrastructure constraints despite widespread 5G availability. circleid.com/posts/london-ra…

ICANN87 IN BALI PUTS DNS ABUSE AND NEW GTLD IMPLEMENTATION IN FOCUS — ICANN's Bali meeting examines DNS abuse mitigation, registrant protections and the next gTLD round. Discussions could shape future requirements for domain registries and registrars. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/icann87-i…

DNS SPOTLIGHT: BIGBEAR 2.0 PHAAS TARGETS SPAN 40+ COUNTRIES — A DNS investigation examines 38 network indicators linked to a global Microsoft 365 phishing operation, identifying 81 potential victim IP addresses and 1,048 email-connected domains. Learn more: circleid.com/posts/dns-spotl…

ICANN’S NEW GTLD ROUND DRAWS 16 AFRICAN APPLICATIONS, 10 CONTROLLED BY A CHINESE BUSINESS NETWORK — One businessman controls most of Africa's new gTLD applications while another of his companies seeks to dissolve the continent's Internet number registry. by Emmanuel Vitus circleid.com/posts/icanns-ne…