Public Interest Registry

IN COLLABORATION WITH AND IN SUPPORT OF ITS SOLE MEMBER, THE INTERNET SOCIETY ("ISOC"), PUBLIC INTEREST REGISTRY'S ("PIR") PRIMARY ACTIVITY IS TO MAINTAIN THE .ORG DOMAIN REGISTRY AS THE EXEMPLARY TOP-LEVEL DOMAIN REGISTRY SERVICE; TO OPERATE IT PRIMARILY IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST; AND TO BE RESPONSIVE TO THE ISSUES AND NEEDS OF THE EVER EXPANDING AND UNIQUE WORLDWIDE .ORG COMMUNITY, WHICH INCLUDES NON-COMMERCIAL/NON-PROFIT USERS AND ORGANIZATIONS, CONSISTENT WITH THE FUNDAMENTAL OBJECTIVES OF ITS SOLE MEMBER, ISOC. AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF ITS CHARITABLE MISSION, PIR MAINTAINS AND OPERATES THE .ORG TOP-LEVEL DOMAIN REGISTRY IN A FASHION THAT IS DESIGNED TO SET THE QUALITY, EFFICIENCY, AND PRIVACY STANDARDS FOR TOP-LEVEL DOMAINS. PIR WORKS TO CREATE, DEVELOP, MODERNIZE, AND KEEP CURRENT ETHICAL, PRACTICAL, AND TECHNICAL POLICIES, PROCEDURES AND PROTOCOLS REQUIRED TO KEEP ITS OPERATIONAL MODEL FRESH, RELEVANT, AND APPROPRIATE AS AN EXAMPLE FOR THE INTERNET INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE. MANAGING AND OPERATING THE .ORG REGISTRY CONSISTENT WITH AND SUPPORTIVE OF PIR'S AND ISOC'S RESPECTIVE NON-PROFIT MISSIONS AND IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE RULES AND CONSENSUS POLICIES DEVELOPED BY THE INTERNET CORPORATION FOR ASSIGNED NAMES AND NUMBERS ("ICANN") ALSO REQUIRES COLLABORATING WITH THE WORLDWIDE NON-COMMERCIAL/NON-PROFIT ORIENTED COMMUNITY. PIR MAINTAINS AN ADVISORY COUNCIL COMPOSED OF KNOWLEDGEABLE INDUSTRY EXPERTS AND LEADERS FROM GLOBAL NONPROFIT AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL ARENAS TO HELP PIR SUPPORT ITS COMMUNITY. PIR RELIES ON THE INSIGHT AND KNOWLEDGE OBTAINED FROM THE MEMBERS OF ITS ADVISORY COUNCIL AND A CONSTANT STREAM OF INFORMATION SOLICITED AND RECEIVED FROM REGISTRARS, AS WELL AS FROM THE MEMBERS OF ITS OWN DIVERSE AND KNOWLEDGEABLE BOARD OF DIRECTORS, TO EFFECTIVELY ADDRESS THE INTERESTS OF THE WORLDWIDE MISSION-BASED INTERNET COMMUNITY. PIR ALSO CONDUCTS EDUCATION AND OUTREACH (E&O) IN THE GLOBAL NON-PROFIT AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION (NGO) SPACE. THESE EFFORTS HAVE TWO PURPOSES: FIRST, TO SUPPORT AND ASSIST PIR ACHIEVE ITS IMPORTANT AND CHARITABLE MISSION; AND SECOND, TO SHARE ITS EXPERTISE AS AN EXEMPLARY DOMAIN NAME REGISTRY AS WELL AS TO HELP OTHER ORGANIZATIONS SHARE THEIR EXPERTISE BY CONDUCTING CONFERENCES, REGIONAL GATHERINGS, AND TRAINING SESSIONS FOCUSED ON IMPROVING USE OF THE INTERNET, ESPECIALLY BY MISSION-BASED USERS AROUND THE WORLD. IN 2019 PIR BEGAN REFRAMING ITS E&O EFFORTS IN FURTHERANCE OF ITS MISSION STATEMENT, I.E., TO SERVE AS "[A]N EXEMPLARY DOMAIN NAME REGISTRY AND INDUSTRY THOUGHT LEADER PROVIDING A TRUSTED DIGITAL IDENTITY AND SERVING AS A VALUED RESOURCE TO THOSE WORKING TO IMPROVE OUR WORLD." WHILE SUPPORTING ISOC REMAINS A CORE PIR MISSION AND ACTIVITY, PIR HAS EXPANDED THE SCOPE OF ITS E&O ACTIVITIES INTO WHAT CAN BE BETTER DESCRIBED AS "EXEMPLARY DOMAIN NAME REGISTRY" INITIATIVES, INCLUDING: PIR CREATED THE NETBEACON INSTITUTE (THE "INSTITUTE,PREVIOUSLY THE "DNS ABUSE INSTITUTE") IN ORDER TO HELP THE ENTIRE DOMAIN NAME INDUSTRY IMPROVE PRACTICES TO COMBAT ABUSES OF THE DOMAIN NAME SYSTEM ("DNS ABUSE"). THE INSTITUTE IS A DEPARTMENT WITHIN PIR AND HAS THREE PILLARS: EDUCATION, INNOVATION AND COLLABORATION. THE INSTITUTE CREATES AND PUBLISHES BEST PRACTICES TO HELP EDUCATE REGISTRIES AND REGISTRARS ON EFFECTIVE DNS ABUSE MITIGATION AND PREVENTION PRACTICES. THE INSTITUTE HAS ALREADY LAUNCHED TWO FLAGSHIP INITIATIVES AIMED TO REDUCE DNS ABUSE ACROSS THE INTERNET. FIRST, THE INSTITUTE CREATED THE VERY FIRST CENTRALIZED DNS ABUSE REPORTING TOOL CALLED NETBEACON REPORTER. NETBEACON REPORTER ALLOWS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT, SECURITY PROFESSIONALS, AND THE PUBLIC AT LARGE TO REPORT INSTANCES OF DNS ABUSE AND NETBEACON REPORTER WILL THEN ROUTE THE NOTIFICATION TO THE PROPER REGISTRAR THAT SPONSORS THE DOMAIN. NETBEACON WAS DEVELOPED IN CONJUNCTION WITH CLEAN DNS AND IS COMPLETELY FREE TO USE FOR BOTH REPORTERS AND DOMAIN NAME REGISTRARS. NETBEACON REPORTER ROUTED MORE THAN 15,000 REFERRALS OF DNS ABUSE TO REGISTRARS IN 2023. THE INSTITUTE ALSO LAUNCHED NETBEACON MAP (MEASUREMENT AND ANALYTICS PLATFORM), WHICH HELPS MEASURE WHERE DNS ABUSE IS LOCATED AND CENTRALIZED ACROSS THE DNS. THE INSTITUTE PUBLISHED ITS METHODOLOGY FOR MEASURING DNS ABUSE AND HAS BEGUN PUBLISHING ITS REPORTS ON LEVELS OF PHISHING AND MALWARE ACROSS THE DNS. UNLIKE OTHER MEASUREMENT TOOLS, NETBEACON MAP SPECIFICALLY IDENTIFIES REGISTRARS AND TOP-LEVEL DOMAINS WITH BOTH HIGHER AND LOWER THAN EXPECTED CONCENTRATIONS OF DNS ABUSE. LIKE NETBEACON REPORTER, NETBEACON MAP REPORTS ARE OFFERED AT NO COST. FINALLY, TO FULFILL ITS EDUCATION COMMITMENTS, THE INSTITUTE ALSO REGULARLY PUBLISHES BEST PRACTICES FOR REGISTRARS AND REGISTRIES FOR THE IDENTIFICATION AND MITIGATION OF DNS ABUSE. THE INSTITUTE AIMS TO BE GLOBAL IN ITS EFFORTS, AND ATTEMPTS TO MEET THE INDUSTRY WHERE THEY ARE. TO THAT END, THE INSTITUTE PARTICIPATES IN WEBINARS AND CONFERENCES, INCLUDING ORGANIZING A DAY OF DNS ABUSE DISCUSSIONS IN DA NANG, VIETNAM, AS PART OF APAC OUTREACH. -- PIR CREATED A TRUSTED NOTIFIER RELATIONSHIP WITH THE AMERICAN RED CROSS, IN WHICH IT REFERS DOMAINS WITH SITES THAT ARE ESTABLISHED TO EITHER PHISH OR DEFRAUD POTENTIAL DONORS TO THE RED CROSS OR ITS VARIOUS INTERNATIONAL CHAPTERS. THIS OCCURS PARTICULARLY IN RESPONSE TO ARMED CONFLICTS OR NATURAL DISASTERS (E.G., THE RUSSIAN INVASION OF UKRAINE, OR EARTHQUAKES, OR FLOODING INTERNATIONALLY). WHEN PIR RECEIVES A REFERRAL FROM THE RED CROSS, PIR WILL CONFIRM THE PRESENCE OF THE FRAUD AND THEN ACT ON THE DOMAINS PURSUANT TO OUR ANTI-ABUSE PROGRAM. PIR IS THE FIRST REGISTRY OPERATOR TO CREATE SUCH A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE RED CROSS. -- PIR CO-FOUNDED DNS ABUSE WORKING GROUP FOR GTLD REGISTRIES, WHERE DOMAIN NAME REGISTRIES CAN DISCUSS DEVELOPMENTS AND BEST PRACTICES RELATED TO DNS ABUSE IDENTIFICATION, MITIGATION, AND PREVENTION. -- PIR PREVIOUSLY SPEARHEADED DEVELOPMENT OF THE "FRAMEWORK TO ADDRESS ABUSE", WHICH INFORMS DOMAIN NAME REGISTRIES AND REGISTRARS HOW TO BEST ADDRESS DNS ABUSE AND EGREGIOUS FORMS OF ABUSE SUCH AS CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE MATERIALS ("CSAM"). -- PIR'S QUALITY PERFORMANCE INDEX (QPI) INITIATIVE SHOWCASES PIR'S INDUSTRY LEADERSHIP BY FOCUSING ON MAINTAINING THE QUALITY OF THE .ORG DOMAIN NAME SPACE. QPI WAS CREATED TO ENCOURAGE QUALITY DOMAIN NAME REGISTRATIONS AND LOWER THE INSTANCES OF ABUSES IN THE DOMAIN NAME SYSTEM. THE SCORE CALCULATED FROM THE QPI ALGORITHM CAN BE USED FOR A VARIETY OF PURPOSES, INCLUDING DETERMINING ELIGIBILITY FOR A VARIETY OF PIR CHANNEL AND MARKETING PROGRAMS. PIR HAS PRESENTED QPI TO OTHER DOMAIN NAME REGISTRIES AND REGISTRARS TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO CREATE AND ROLL OUT SIMILAR PROGRAMS. THE QPI PROGRAM CONTINUES TO RECEIVE POSITIVE FEEDBACK FROM REGISTRARS, THE ICANN COMMUNITY, AND THE LARGER DOMAIN NAME ECOSYSTEM. -- IN 2023, PIR CONTINUED TO PARTNER WITH SELECT ORGANIZATIONS DEDICATED TO SERVING THE MISSION DRIVEN, NONPROFIT COMMUNITIES INCLUDING CHARITY DIGITAL, THE GLOBAL CYBER ALLIANCE (GCA), AND COMMUNITY BOOST. WITH THESE PARTNERSHIPS, WE WERE ABLE TO SHARE OUR INTERNAL EXPERTISE ON CYBERSECURITY AND DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGIES THROUGH PODCASTS AND SPEAKING OPPORTUNITIES AT VARIOUS EVENTS. IN ADDITION, WE WERE ABLE TO EXCHANGE VALUABLE CONTENT INTO AND OUT OF OUR FREE RESOURCE PORTAL, THE .ORG LEARNING CENTER. -- IN 2023, OUR ANNUAL .ORG IMPACT AWARDS (OIAS) CONTINUED TO RECOGNIZE INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE A CONNECTION TO A REGISTERED .ORG DOMAIN NAME FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND IMPACT THEY HAVE MADE IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. WITH AN INCREASE OF AWARD MONEY FROM $105,000 TO $180,000, AND A MORE COMPREHENSIVE COMMUNICATIONS PLAN, WE WERE ABLE TO REACH A TOTAL NUMBER OF 974 SUBMISSIONS FROM OVER 70 COUNTRIES, WITH A HIGHER QUALITY, MORE DIVERSE APPLICANT POOL OVERALL. IN NOVEMBER, THE ANNUAL AWARDS CEREMONY RETURNED TO AN IN-PERSON CELEBRATION AND BROUGHT OUR COMMUNITY TOGETHER IN WASHINGTON, DC ON NOVEMBER 16. WE WELCOMED OVER 60 REPRESENTATIVES FROM 33 OF OUR 35 SELECTED FINALISTS, WITH INDIVIDUALS TRAVELING FROM COLUMBIA, MALAYSIA, NIGERIA, THE UK AND ALL ACROSS THE UNITED STATES TO BE PART OF THE EVENT. WE CROWNED 7 CATEGORY WINNERS AND ONE .ORG OF THE YEAR WINNER, HOPE FOR JUSTICE AND TO DATE, THE .ORG IMPACT AWARDS HAS NOW RECOGNIZED 190 INCREDIBLE ORGANIZATIONS WITH A .ORG DOMAIN AND AWARDED $505,000 USD TO SUPPORT THEIR IMPACTFUL WORK TAKING PLACE AROUND THE WORLD. -- PIR'S ORG IN ACTION CAMPAIGN IS DESIGNED TO INCREASE AWARENESS OF OUR .ORG COMMUNITY AND THEIR POSITIVE IMPACT AROUND THE WORLD. IN 2023, WE ROLLED OUT SIX FEATURES CONTAINING THREE VIDEOS-ONE TWO-MINUTE CUT, TWO ONE-MINUTE CUTS, AND A WRITTEN ARTICLE. THE SIX ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE HIGHLIGHTED WERE WOMEN GIVING BACK, STOP AAPI HATE, YOUTH VS. APOCALYPSE, LETTERS TO STRANGERS, POINT FOUNDATION, AND THE HISPANIC FEDERATION.