Dear Colleagues, please find below my report.
Have a nice day!
Best,
Matthias
 
 
General:
ICANN 85: Plenary on Internet Resilience to Survivability is confirmed for 09/03.The proposal is as follows:

Title: From Stability to Survivability: ICANN's Role in the Future of Internet Resilience

Goal: Shift the community mindset from technical stability—keeping the DNS running—to strategic resilience—ensuring the Internet ecosystem survives inevitable shocks across power, regulation, software supply chains, and third-party dependencies. Drawing on our SAC132 work, the session will highlight four systemic resilience challenges that no single part of the community fully controls:

  • Increasing system complexity
  • Underinvestment in preventive measures
  • Intensifying regulatory pressures
  • Software supply-chain vulnerabilities

The focus is not on explaining how the Internet works, but on exploring what happens when external systems fail—and what role ICANN and its community should play.

Publications:
There are presently no new publications available.
 
Ongoing work parties:
  • DNSSEC Operational Considerations Work Party
  • Responsible Integration of External Technologies into the DNS
  • DNS Abuse and Artificial Intelligence

Upcoming Work Parties:

  • DNS Transparency
SSAC Membership Applications:

The SSAC welcomes three new members:

  • Wes Hardaker,
  • Sourena Maroofi,
  • Raffaele Sommese.

The SSAC is look forward to the contributions these new members will make to our ongoing work and also want to thank departing member Joe Abley for his service over the years. He has been a champion for SSAC since 2014 and a dear friend to us all. 

Technical Apprenticeship Program:

The SSAC is excited to foster talent development and strengthen the pathway for ICANN Fellowship alumni into deeper ICANN community engagement through this program. It provides a structured pathway for alumni of the ICANN Fellowship program with technical or security backgrounds to gain hands-on experience with the SSAC.

Our selected apprentice for 2026 is Gustavo Ortega Alvarado, who will support SSAC activities and undertake an independent research project relevant to the SSAC's remit concluding with the 2026 SSAC Annual Workshop in late-September or early-October. Gustavo will work with a dedicated mentor from within our leadership committee for guidance on navigating the SSAC and facilitating their successful work within the program.