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<p>Dear advisors. The past year has seen a major battle at the
international level around how much data should be released about
holders of domains. If you have a .ca domain, your privacy is
already shielded. But if you have a .com or other gTLD, anyone can
search the WhoIs database for your information. It has been like
this for years. <br>
</p>
<p>But we live in a globalized world. New European privacy
regulations are now forcing ICANN to reconsider what information
should be available about domain holders. It is a fierce battle,
pitching civil rights advocates against intellectual property
lawyers and public security officials with the interests of 4
billion end users hanging somewhere in the balance. An ICANN
policy group which has been trying to resolve the issues has just
released a report asking for comments. <br>
</p>
<p>It is complicated but the following, very well written blog does
a good job at explaining the major issues and how their resolution
will affect every internet user, not just domain name holders. It
is not without bias and some who argue on the side of public
safety may find it wanting in that perspective. But I haven't
found a similiar document from other perspectives. So, place your
own filter as need be. <br>
</p>
<p>Whois-privacy reform hits its first milestone (Milton Mueller --
Internet Governance Project)<br>
</p>
<p><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://www.internetgovernance.org/2018/11/25/whois-privacy-reform-hits-its-first-milestone/"><font
face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">https://www.internetgovernance.org/2018/11/25/whois-privacy-reform-hits-its-first-milestone/</font></a></p>
<p><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">During the next few
weeks, volunteers in the At Large policy working group will be
crafting a response to the report discussed. At ICANN, At Large
has the responsibility to speak on behalf of the world's 4
billion internet users. Of course, it will always be a "best
guess" situation. However, if anyone here would be interested in
commenting on how they feel about the issue outlined -- as your
representative there, I would love to be able to bring these to
the table.</font></p>
<p><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">Marita</font><br>
</p>
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