The Politicisation of the Internet’s Domain Name System - Implications for Internet Security, Universality, and Freedom

One of the most contentious and longstanding global debates in Internet governance (IG) involves the question of oversight of the Domain Name System (DNS). DNS administration is sometimes understatedly described as a ‘clerical’ or ‘merely technical’ task, but it also implicates a number of public-policy concerns such as trademark disputes, infrastructure stability and security, resource allocation, and freedom of speech. A parallel but distinct phenomenon involves governmental and private forces increasingly altering or co-opting the DNS for political and economic purposes completely distinct from its core function of resolving Internet names into numbers. This paper examines the intrinsic politics of the DNS in its day-to-day operations and specific examples and techniques of co-opting or altering DNS technical infrastructure as a new tool of global power. It concludes with an analysis of the implications of this infrastructure-mediated governance on network security characteristics, architectural stability, and efficacy of the IG ecosystem.