Judge Rejects Plea From States to Stop U.S. from Giving Up Control of Internet

Just last Friday, a federal judge rejected a last-ditch effort by Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma and Nevada to stop the U.S. government from handing over control of the Internet to an international body.

From the article:

“Judge George Hanks, Jr., of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas denied an emergency request by the states — Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma and Nevada — for a temporary restraining order to interrupt the handover, which was scheduled for midnight Friday.”

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, is an international, unaccountable, “multi-stakeholder” organization who manage domain names and assign Internet service provider numbers to the world. Their international board of directors, overseen by the “Governmental Advisory Committee”, includes 111 countries, including China, Russia and Iran (don’t worry, according to the organization’s website, countries don’t control the Internet). Based in California, they have a budget of more than $130 million a year and employe 350 people.

It is this company that Obama signed our control of the internet over to, on October 1st. And with that signature, we entered a new internet epoch. “There is obvious concern about how this transition will impact our continued operation. And with so much of the world’s economy and commerce — as well as military, government services, telecommunications, emergency services, medicine, education, and infrastructure — critically tied to, and dependent on, the Internet, concerns about national security, privacy, stability, and censorship under the new ICANN regime are not trifling matters either,” reports The New American.

As if those reasons weren’t enough, ICANN also seems to have security issues; they have admitted to having been breached hundreds of times by outside hackers. But it’s not just about external threats. What about internal threats from those inside ICANN who are entrusted, literally, with the keys to the kingdom (Russia and China for example)? There is very little known about who the keyholders are and just how much power they have.

And that is why the attorneys general of Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma and Nevada filed their lawsuits, arguing that the states would “lose the predictability, certainty, and protections that currently flow from federal stewardship of the Internet and instead be subjected to ICANN’s unchecked control.” But, last Friday, Judge Hanks ruled that the plaintiffs failed to prove “irreparable harm” would result from the handover and denied the injunction.

From the UPI article:

“The states aren’t likely to give up, but even if they do, the House may still join the fight, as could other intervenors,” Berin Szóka, president of TechFreedom, said in response to Hanks’ ruling Friday. “And even if this lawsuit fizzles, some other plaintiff could raise the issue in the future.”

We will be watching this story very carefully and will update you as we have more information. To view the lawsuit, click here Ariz, Okla, Nevada, Texas v. NTIA.

Source: UPI and The New American