September 2020
Message from the Commissioner

Kia ora,
Spring greetings!
Most of the submissions to the .nz policy review are now online and we’ve submitted along with many others. It will now be up to the Panel to synthesise the views and prepare their final report to InternetNZ Council on the future of the policies for .nz.
We, at the Commission, have read the submissions with interest and are looking forward to seeing how the next 6 months shape up when it comes to implementing suggested changes to .nz policies.
This month also sees us partner with some businesses to bring a new website and a pilot of an online negotiation service. Watch this space.
These changes should bring about positive consumer experiences when it comes to getting support, accessing information and resolving disputes.
We hope you are looking forward to more daylight hours that Spring brings and a change in the weather.
Ngā mihi,
Brent Carey
Updates from the team
.nz policy review - our submission
Some of the key points we raised in our submission were:
- proposing a rapid domain name suspension process
- raising concerns about the implementation of a New Zealand benefit test
- raising some of the risks that arise from managing a prohibited domain name list
- specifying changes to the Dispute Resolution service
Read
our .nz policy review submission here.
Transparency report
Our yearly
transparency report is out now. The report outlines current trends in requests for information, domain name suspension requests and privacy matters related to the management of .nz. It also details how we responded to the COVID-19 state of emergency regarding domain name suspensions.
Policy consultation
Together with the moderator for
.iwi.nz, Karaitiana Taiuru, we have completed our consultation with Iwi on changes to the moderation policy. The consultation included two zoom hui throughout August.
The changes have slightly expanded the criteria of being able to register a .iwi.nz domain name, whilst not excluding any current registrants. As a result of the consultation process changes will be made to the moderation policy. The changes have been accepted by the .iwi.nz community. It will soon be available to read on our website.
We would like to thank Karaitiana for his assistance in this process, as well as everyone who has engaged with the process.
Domain name transfers, market changes
Did you know between January and August 2020 we assisted registrants with more than 40,000 domain name transfers between .nz authorised registrars?
The transfers have been triggered as a result of planned consolidations in the .nz domain name market. The changes have resulted in 11 .nz authorised registrars exiting the market. You can access the full list of current .nz authorised registrars on our website.
Compliance
How to keep your .nz domain name safe
Are you a small business who is online but maybe not in control of your domain name details?
Our
latest blog is full of tips about where to find details about your current registration, when it expires, who it is registered to and why you should care about your contact details.
Top tip
Getting random emails or phone numbers asking why you haven’t delivered that latest pair of designer shoes, handbags or jeans?
Your details may have been used inappropriately to register a .nz domain name. If you get these contacts or calls report them to our partners CERT NZ, Netsafe or NZ Police.
You can also contact us at info@dnc.org.nz so that we can follow up with who has registered the domain name. We will take steps to correct your details associated with that domain name.
Outreach and engagement
Local
The 2020 General Election, and voting on two referenda will now take place on 17 October 2020. We have been working with all political parties about their domain name portfolios and election-related domain names. We will be continuing to monitor election related domain names over the next couple of months.
International
As part of our ongoing commitment to the Asia-Pacific region and sharing of information with our counter-parts internationally, Ann Ibrahim, was recently invited by the Pacific Cyber Security Operational Network to talk about the .nz domain name space and ways to combat threats. Ann’s domain name abuse and incident response presentation is available on our website.
Ann will also be moderating a session on technical passive dns at the upcoming Asia Pacific Top Level Domain Name Association meeting September 3-4.
Get in touch if you would like any of the team to deliver a presentation online or at your place of work.
Interesting links and media