Pierre Dandjinou
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has indicated that it is in the process of changing the cryptographic keys that help secure the internet’s Domain Name System (DNS) in Ghana and across the world.
The move, which will commence on October 11, this year, BUSINESS GUIDE gathered, has become necessary to keep global DNS safe and secure.
It is in line with commonly accepted operational practices that ensure that important security infrastructure can support changing password, if the need arise.
With the pending change of the keys, it has become imperative that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and network operators around the world make certain they are ready for this change, as failure to do so can result in their users being unable to look up domain names and unable to reach any site on the Internet.
ICANN, this paper gathered, has been working with technical partners such as the Regional Internet Registries, Network Operations Groups, and domain name registries and registrars, as well as others in the internet ecosystem, such as the Internet Society and internet trade associations, to make ensure that Ghanaians and other global citizens who may be impacted by the key roll are aware of the pending change.
Speaking to journalists on Tuesday in Accra, ICANN’s Vice President of Stakeholder Engagement for Africa Region, Pierre Dandjinou, explained that the changing of the keys shall help get rid of such threats as hacking, hijacking that internet users normally face.
He indicated that the move was important for Ghana and indeed the entire African continent which has a large population of internet users who constantly face cyber theft.
According to him, ICANN was embarking on a global communication campaign to make individuals aware of the roll out.
“We have launched a testing platform so network operators can make certain that they are ready for the key roll well ahead of October 11,” according to ICANN’s Chief Technology Officer, David Conrad.
“That testing platform can be accessed at: https://go.icaan.org/KSKtest. Internet users should contact their ISP or network operators to make certain they are ready for the key change,” he declared.
About ICANN
ICANN was formed in 1998 as a not-for-profit public-benefit corporation and a community with participants from all over the world.
By Melvin Tarlue