ICANN released a report on its outreach with registrars in May 2014, which focuses on how registrars handle complaints under Registrar Accreditation Agreement.
ICANN reiterated that ensuring the stability, security and reliability of the Internet is the responsibility of every member of the online community, and that processing complaints is one of the key areas of activity in this respect.
For that reason, ICANN already accepts reports of non-compliance by registrars with complaints, including anonymous ones, and is committed to doing so in the future. In May 2014, the organization received several reports of noncompliance from parties wishing to remain anonymous and is managing those complaints.
In its report, ICANN also reminded registrars of the main principles for handling complaints, stating that registrars must accept abuse reports from law enforcement bodies, as well as individuals; court orders are not required for registrars to investigate abuse reports, though reasonable steps to investigate and respond to abuse reports can and should be taken. If registrars are not complying with abuse complaints, such complaints may be submitted directly to ICANN.
The report also features data on complaints received by accredited registrars in May 2014. WHOIS inaccuracy was by far the most recurrent complaint, accounting for 2,511 out of a total of 3,247 complaints, and domain transfers ranked second with 486 complaints. Senior Deputy Director of the Technical Center of Internet, Marina Nikerova, said that ICANN reports highlight the issues that registrars are facing. “Such reports are very useful, since they provide an opportunity to gain an external perspective on our business and discover how other companies are faring. Furthermore, ICANN provides registrars an impetus to address issues and streamline these processes. By following these reports, we can track trends regarding complaints, which give us insight into whether our efforts are effective,” she said.
