[ARIN-consult] Consultation on Orphaned Organization (Org) and Point of Contact (POC) Records

[John Curran]

On 1 Aug 2018, at 2:44 PM, ARIN <info at arin.net<mailto:info at arin.net>> wrote:

Total # of registered POCs in ARIN's database:  919,050
Total # of POCs that have been orphaned for 1+ years:  351,644

Some additional data attached.
/John

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Q: What is the average age of the orphaned records?

Here’s the distribution of the POCs presently orphaned for one year originally created date since 2000

       Year of POC Number
Creation  of POCs

2017 14,639
2016 34,334
2015 38,785
2014 32,254
2013 33,627
2012 35,050
2011 29,576
2010 23,231
2009 21,984
2008 20,398
2007 15,234
2006 10,650
2005   5,679
2004   5,650
2003   4,758
2002   5,690
2001   7,353
2000   5,670

 (Orphaned orgs have a very similar distribution)

 Q: Is there a way to keep an orphaned POC from being deleted?

  A: Yes. One of the criteria we are applying is not to remove any locked records. If you wish to prevent a record from being deleted, you may request that it be locked.

  Q: Can deleted records be restored?

  A: Not at this time. We have examined the work required to restore deleted records and determined that it would require significant effort to change the system to allow it.  Keeping deleted records permanently deleted also serves as a security measure. When old records are restored, there’s a chance some of that old history could provide an attack vector. Creating a new record allows us to ensure that we are able to obtain the most current/accurate information.  Note that there is likely no significant difference in the work required to establish a new set of records rather than restore old ones. Our current practice requires annual re-verification/vetting of Org records, so even if the record had been preserved rather than deleted, there's minimal difference in terms of what would be required from organizations.

Q: How many orphaned records are from SWIP and how many are from direct registrations?

  A: 1% of the orphaned records have ever been associated with a direct registration. 99% of the orphaned records have been associated with at least one object (network/ASN) at some point. Based on this data, it’s safe to conclude +/- 98% of the orphaned records were created solely for SWIP.

Q: Will the deleted data disappear forever?

A: No. It will remain archived and will still be available to fulfill WhoWas reports, subpoena requests, etc, although it will not appear in Whois and will not be available for anything other than historical research. Note that at present WhoWas accepts a single IP address or AS number - you cannot query by Org ID or POC handle.

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