[arin-ppml] IPv4 Transfer Policy Change to Keep Whois Accurate

[Jimmy Hess]

On Wed, May 11, 2011 at 1:09 PM, Owen DeLong <owen at delong.com> wrote:
> I oppose the policy as written.
> Abandoning our stewardship role for the sake of making it more likely
> people will register their misappropriation of community resources is
> like legalizing bank robbery in the hopes that the thieves will pay
> income tax on their ill gotten gains.
+1.

The proposal's name seems a bit out of place;  "Keep Whois Accurate"
is an eventual outcome the author hopes the policy will have / thinks
the policy is necessary to achieve.  Usually policies are named by the
actions they will take,  instead of theoretical results, it is hoped that
the policy will have.
A more fitting title would be:   "Remove justified need and
utilization criteria from resource transfers"

The policy does nothing to ensure WHOIS accuracy.
Even with this policy adopted, there is a possibility of black market transfers,
and address hijacking; perhaps it will be cheaper.

Removal of the utilization criterion encourages IP address speculation, which
can cause temporary spikes of the price transferrors might ask for, resulting
in internet instability due to the hijackings that encourages.


" The underlying proposition behind this policy proposal is that the
  registry of IPv4 addresses operated by ARIN is of general utility and
  value only while it accurately describes the current state of address
  distribution. If a class of address movement transactions are excluded
  from being entered in the registry, then the registry will have
  decreasing value to the broader community, and the integrity of the
  network itself is thereby compromised. "

The rationale claims there will be "a class of address movement transactions
excluded from being entered into the registry"  under current policy.

We are to believe these movements will happen,  and happen with
sufficient frequency
and quantity to be an issue,  although this has not been shown to be the case.

We are to believe that throwing out the justified need requirements
for transfers is the
best way to avoid that, and  reflecting all such transfers in WHOIS is
the most important
consideration.

I don't buy that argument.   ARIN doesn't need to adopt this policy or
remove needs
justification from transfers to discourage illicit transfers.

Another way ARIN can discourage illicit transfers, is to look for
suspicious signs of
possible IP address hijacking (legacy or otherwise), and work with the community
to identify and flag IP addresses that are possibly hijacked or being
used unofficially
by an organization other than the registrant of record.


> Owen
--
-JH