March 2026 - At-Large - lists.icann.org

SAC130: SSAC Comments on Name Collision Guidelines in the Proposed Language for the Draft Next Round Applicant Guidebook
by Matthias M. Hudobnik April 24, 2026

April 24, 2026

Dear Colleagues, The SSAC welcomes the opportunity to comment on ICANN's Draft Applicant Guidebook (AGB) for the New gTLD Program: Next Round. Our comments focus on improving Section 6.7 on Name Collisions, with an emphasis on risks arising from collisions between DNS and alternative naming systems (e.g., blockchain-based systems), as outlined in the Name Collision Analysis Project Study 2 Report (NCAP2). SUMMARY OF KEY RECOMMENDATIONS: * Clarify TRT's Role in Initial Assessments AGB §6.7.2 does not clearly state that the Technical Review Team (TRT) conducts the initial name collision risk assessment. NCAP2 indicates TRT is responsible from the outset. _Recommendation:_ Explicitly assign the initial assessment to the TRT. * Enable Pre-Delegation Action on High-Risk Strings Current language suggests high-risk strings are identified only after temporary delegation. NCAP2 supports action based on existing data. _Recommendation:_ Allow TRT to recommend withholding delegation if early analysis shows high risk. * Broaden TRT's Assessment Scope Beyond DNS Data Limiting analysis to DNS logs misses collisions from alternative namespaces that resolve via DNS (e.g., users accustomed to _.wallet_ from blockchain). _Recommendation:_ Permit use of OSINT, qualitative assessments, and external data sources per NCAP2. * Allow TRT Flexibility to Evolve Assessment Methods AGB cites four NCAP2 methods (NI, CI, VI, VIN), but doesn't state whether TRT may adopt new techniques. _Recommendation:_ Affirm TRT's discretion to evolve methods to address future risks. These updates will better align the AGB with NCAP2 and ICANN Board guidance, while improving transparency, security, and technical rigor in handling name collisions. The SSAC appreciates the efforts of the ICANN org and Subsequent Procedures IRT, and we are available for further discussion. Link: https://itp.cdn.icann.org/en/files/security-and-stability-advisory-committe…. Best, Matthias

1 1

APF Webinar #3: Universal Acceptance of All Domain Names and Email Addresses
by Justine Chew April 10, 2026

April 10, 2026

Dear Sarmad, Pitinan, I would like to inform you that Edmon Chung has kindly agreed to moderate the third and final webinar in the APF Multilingual Internet Webinar Series 2026. We would be grateful if you could confirm the following at your earliest convenience: 1. That Thu 23 April 2026 at 06:00 UTC for 75 mins is still suitable for the webinar 2. Whether either or both of you will be presenting at the webinar 3. Whether the agenda is to be updated, please see: 2026.04.xx APF MI Series - Webinar #3: Universal Acceptance of All Domain Names and Email Addresses <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VLkl5tkjSe-9uu7jxJolXJ5f4pweTRzu_aFVn3_…> (you should have edit rights) We would like to be able to schedule and promote this last webinar in good time; and will be looking to use the following text for part of the invitation emails in due course. You are invited to Webinar #3: Universal Acceptance of All Domain Names and Email Addresses on 23 April 2026 at 06:00 UTC for 75 minutes, where Edmon Chung will host Sarmad Hussain, Senior Director, IDN & UA Programs, ICANN and Pitinan Kooarmornpatana, IDN Programs Director, ICANN in an an introduction to Universal Acceptance (UA), current issues and how these are being addressed in collaboration with the community. This session also covers how the community can contribute to promote UA adoption, so, please join us! Many thanks in advance. Kind regards, Justine Chew APRALO Policy Forum <https://icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/OOrdBg> Chair -----

3 4

RECORDING - EURALO Multilingual Read-Out ICANN85
by Joly MacFie March 31, 2026

March 31, 2026

[ISOC LIVE Recaps are now also available at https://isoclive.substack.com/] [image: Banner for “Multilingual Read-Out ICANN85 (EURALO)” on 24 March 2026. Gateway of India image on left; right panel lists speakers (Fouquart, Kulesza, Hudobnik, Bürger, Filinovych, Peake, Esfandiari, Filina). Moderator: Frederic Taes. EURALO/ICANN logos; “Archived by ISOC.LIVE.”] <https://i0.wp.com/isoc.live/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/euralo-icann85.jpg?s…> VIDEO <https://youtu.be/uM8HMPeML0o> | AUDIO <https://archive.org/download/euralo-icann85/euralo-icann85.mp3> | RECAP <https://www.patreon.com/posts/154326755/> | ARCHIVE <https://archive.org/details/euralo-icann85> | PERMALINK <https://isoc.live/20482> On March 24, 2026 the European Regional At-Large Organization <https://atlarge.icann.org/ralos/euralo> (EURALO) hosted a Multilingual ICANN 85 Read-Out <https://icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/GYBLNQ>. PRESENTERS Philippe Fouquart – GNSO Joanna Kulesza – At-Large & GAC Matthias Hudobnik – SSAC Constanze Bürger – ASO Valeriia Filinovych – ICANN Fellow Adam Peake – ICANN GSE Pari Esfandiari – ALAC HOSTS / MODERATORS Frédéric Taes – Chair, EURALO Natalia Filina – Secretary, EURALO FACILITATOR Michelle DeSmyter – Policy Support At-Large & GNSO, ICANN -- -------------------------------------- Joly MacFie +12185659365 -------------------------------------- -

1 0

APRALO Policy Forum – IDN Policies and Implementation
by Joly MacFie March 30, 2026

March 30, 2026

*** ISOC LIVE recaps are now also available at https://isoclive.substack.com/ <https://isoclive.substack.com/> *** [image: ISOC LIVE] <https://isoc.live/20386> VIDEO <https://youtu.be/4Ejx3SijE74> | AUDIO <https://archive.org/download/apralo-multilingual-2/apralo-multilingual-2.mp3> | RECAP <https://www.patreon.com/posts/154218345/> | ARCHIVE <https://archive.org/details/apralo-multilingual-2> | PERMALINK <https://isoc.live/20386> On 26 March 2026, , the APRALO Policy Forum <https://icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/OOrdBg> hosted ‘IDN Policies and Implementation <https://icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/OOrdBg>‘, the second of the series of 3 webinars to introduce ICANN’s goal for a “Multilingual Internet” and its engagement of relevant stakeholders to deliver this goal. The session tackled 4 topics: the history and background of IDN variant issues, the policy development work across GNSO and ccNSO, implementation of IDN policies in the 2026 new gTLD round, and upcoming policy work still in the pipeline. PRESENTERS Sarmad Hussain – Senior Director, IDN & UA Programs, ICANN Pitinan Kooarmornpatana – IDN Programs Director, ICANN HOST / MODERATOR Satish Babu – ALAC Member, APRALO

1 0

RECORDING - eco - ICANN85 Readout – Highlights & Take-Aways from the Community Forum
by Joly MacFie March 26, 2026

March 26, 2026

[image: ISOC LIVE] <https://isoc.live/20366> VIDEO <https://youtu.be/FzYepVkWGhU> | AUDIO <https://archive.org/download/eco-icann85/eco-icann85.mp3> | RECAP <https://www.patreon.com/posts/153980908/> | ARCHIVE <https://archive.org/details/eco-icann85> | PERMALINK <https://isoc.live/20366/> On March 18, 2026, eco – Association of the Internet Industry <https://www.eco.de/> and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers <https://www.icann.org/> (ICANN) jointly hosted ‘ICANN85 Readout – Highlights & Take-Aways from the Community Forum <https://www.eco.de/event/icann85-readout-highlights-take-aways-from-the-com…>‘. Speakers from different constituencies of the ICANN community provided a summary of the main points and key takeaways from the hybrid ICANN85 meeting in Mumbai. SPEAKERS Elizabeth Bacon – Chair, RySG / TCCM Nicolas Caballero – Chair, GAC Jordan Carter – Member, ccNSO Council Philippe Fouquart – Chair, ISPCP Frederic Taes – Chair, EURALO Susan Payne – Chair, GNSO Council Sarah Wyld – Vice-Chair, RrSG HOSTS Gabriella Schittek – Stakeholder Engagement Director, Nordic & Central Europe – ICANN Org Thomas Rickert – Director Names & Numbers, eco – Association of the Internet Industry Lars Steffen – Director International, eco – Association of the Internet Industry -- -------------------------------------- Joly MacFie +12185659365 -------------------------------------- -

1 0

RECORDING - Preparing the DNS for the Post-Quantum Cryptography transition
by Joly MacFie March 24, 2026

March 24, 2026

[Apologies for a brief drop in Benoit's video early on. Didn't have the recorder turned on properly! Reminder, ISOC LIVE recaps are now also *available on SubStack* <https://isoclive.substack.com/>] [image: ISOC LIVE] <https://isoc.live/20362> VIDEO <https://youtu.be/YYDYlOt-sZk> | AUDIO <https://archive.org/download/is3c-pqc2/is3c-pqc2.mp3> | RECAP <https://www.patreon.com/posts/153803695/> | ARCHIVE <https://archive.org/details/is3c-pqc2> | PERMALINK <https://isoc.live/20362> On 18 March 2026,, the IGF Dynamic Coalition on Internet Standards, Security and Safety Coalition <https://is3coalition.org/> (IS3C) hosted a webinar ‘Preparing the DNS for the Post-Quantum Cryptography transition <https://intgovforum.zoom.us/meeting/register/Ye16qPy7SqC21kx8PRh5Nw#/regist…>‘. This was the second in the IS3C Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) series, The first is available here <https://isoc.live/20268/>. SPEAKERS Benoît Ampeau – Head, Afnic Labs Caspar Schufiser – Research Engineer at SIDN Labs Maarten Botterman – IS3C / GNKS Consult BV HOST / MODERATOR Wout de Natris – van der Borght – IS3C coordinator -- -------------------------------------- Joly MacFie +12185659365 -------------------------------------- -

1 0

RECORDING - NextGen@ICANN85 Presentations
by Joly MacFie March 18, 2026

March 18, 2026

1 0

RECORDING - ICANN 85 - GNSO: ISPCP Outreach Session
by Joly MacFie March 12, 2026

March 12, 2026

[image: ISOC LIVE] <https://isoc.live/>VIDEO <https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlg8We3ePxcNGGx6A6J9irVBczJPUDUkQ> | RECAP <https://www.patreon.com/posts/152819035/> | ARCHIVE <https://archive.org/details/icann85-ispcp> | PERMALINK <https://isoc.live/20332> On March 9 2026, the Internet Service Provider and Connectivity Provider Constituency <https://www.icann.org/groups/ssac> (ISPCP ) of the Generic Name Supporting Organization <https://gnso.icann.org/> (GNSO) organized an Outreach Session <https://icann-community.atlassian.net/wiki/x/AQCnKQ> at the ICANN 85 Community Forum <https://meetings.icann.org/en/meetings/icann85/> in Mumbai. AI-driven analytics are transforming abuse detection and incident response. This forward-looking session explored real-world use cases, the risks of overreliance on automation, and opportunities for collaboration between operators and researchers. 01 Introduction Lars Steffen – ISPCP Vice Chair Santanu Acharya – ISPCP ExCom Member VIDEO <https://youtu.be/eKpkourV-PY> | AUDIO <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/01_introduction.mp3> | RECAP EN <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/01_introduction.EN.pdf> / ES <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/01_introduction.ES.pdf> / FR <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/01_introduction.FR.pdf> 02 AI & DNS Abuse – The Dual Challenge Matthias Hudobnik – SSAC VIDEO <https://youtu.be/41KQN40SSSc> | AUDIO <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/02_AI_and_DNS_Abuse.mp3> | RECAP EN <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/02_AI_and_DNS_Abuse.EN.pdf> / ES <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/02_AI_and_DNS_Abuse.ES.pdf> / FR <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/02_AI_and_DNS_Abuse.FR.pdf> 03 Universal Acceptance Introduction to CODI – Ram Mohan – CODI Universal Acceptance, Digital Inclusion, & the AI Factor – Nitin Walia – ISPCP Guidelines for Advancing UA Adoption – Nabil Benamar – ISPCP VIDEO <https://youtu.be/YUDsEN3CM3w> | AUDIO <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/03_Universal_Acceptance.mp3> | RECAP EN <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/03_Universal_Acceptance.EN.pdf> / ES <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/03_Universal_Acceptance.ES.pdf> / FR <https://archive.org/download/icann85-ispcp/03_Universal_Acceptance.FR.pdf> -- -------------------------------------- Joly MacFie +12185659365 -------------------------------------- -

1 0

RECORDING - ICANN 85 – WSIS+20 Lessons Learned & Next Steps
by Joly MacFie March 11, 2026

March 11, 2026

<https://isoc.live/20323> [image: ISOC LIVE] <https://isoc.live/20323>VIDEO <https://youtu.be/JaKScXfKNKk> | AUDIO <https://archive.org/download/icann85-wsis/icann85-wsis.mp3> | RECAP <https://www.patreon.com/posts/152688168/> | ARCHIVE <https://archive.org/details/icann85-wsis> | PERMALINK <https://isoc.live/20323> On March 9 2026, during the ICANN 85 Community Forum <https://meetings.icann.org/en/meetings/icann85/> in Mumbai, in a panel ‘WSIS+20 Lessons Learned & Next Steps <https://sched.co/2GwkG>‘, Internet governance leaders and community members reflected on the WSIS+20 <https://publicadministration.desa.un.org/wsis20> review process and discussed what comes next. SPEAKERS Kurtis Lindqvist – President and CEO, ICANN Sally Wentworth – President and CEO, ISOC Ian Sheldon – ICANN GAC Amrita Choudhury – ICANN community member Chris Disspain – ICANN community member Chengetai Masango – Head – IGF Secretariat Moderator: Janis Karklins – Head of Government Engagement, ICANN Host: Rebecca McGilley – Government and IGO Engagement Operations Senior Director, ICANN - -- -------------------------------------- Joly MacFie +12185659365 -------------------------------------- -

2 2

EuroDIG Registration
by Olivier MJ Crépin-Leblond March 10, 2026

March 10, 2026

Dear Colleagues, just a reminder, EuroDIG will take place in Brussels on 26 and 27 May 2026. The consolidated programme is now here: https://eurodigwiki.org/wiki/Consolidated_programme_2026 Register here for in person or remote participation: https://www.eurodig.org/get-involved/register-for-eurodig-2026/ Kindest regards, Olivier Crépin-Leblond

1 0