Why do some providers require IPv6 /64 PA space to have public whois?

Mon Dec 10 21:27:20 UTC 2012

Actually, requiring a public whois record is the way it always has been, that's only recently changed.   I think most folks would agree that, IPv4 /32 :: IPv6 /128 as IPv4 /29 :: IPv6 /64  So, while you are right, that swip'ing a v4 /32 has never been required, I think your analogy of a v6 /64 to a v4 /32 is off.  The minimum assignment requiring a swip is also ensconced in RIR policy.  If you don't like it, may I suggest you propose policy to change it?

RIPE's policy:
" When an End User has a network using public address space this must be registered separately with the contact details of the End User. Where the End User is an individual rather than an organisation, the contact information of the service provider may be substituted for the End Users."

  Note the *may* -- ISP's aren't required to support it. 

More RIPE policy.. 
"When an organisation holding an IPv6 address allocation makes IPv6 address assignments, it must register these assignments in the appropriate RIR database.

These registrations can either be made as individual assignments or by inserting a object with a status value of 'AGGREGATED-BY-LIR' where the assignment-size attribute contains the size of the individual assignments made to End Users.When more than a /48 is assigned to an organisation, it must be registered in the database as a separate object with status 'ASSIGNED'."

    So they have to register it, and they get a choice about how they do it.. Your provider has chosen a way you don't like.  Talk to them about it, rather than complaining on NANOG? 

 It's pretty similar in the ARIN region.  In 2004, the ARIN community passed the residential customer privacy policy - specifically allowing ISP's to designate a record private.  Again, it's optional. 

https://www.arin.net/policy/nrpm.html

Min assignment swip
6.5.5.1. Reassignment information

Each static IPv6 assignment containing a /64 or more addresses shall be registered in the WHOIS directory via SWIP or a distributed service which meets the standards set forth in section 3.2. Reassignment registrations shall include each client's organizational information, except where specifically exempted by this policy.

IPv4
4.2.3.7.3.2. Residential Customer Privacy

To maintain the privacy of their residential customers, an organization with downstream residential customers holding /29 and larger blocks may substitute that organization's name for the customer's name, e.g. 'Private Customer - XYZ Network', and the customer's street address may read 'Private Residence'. Each private downstream residential reassignment must have accurate upstream Abuse and Technical POCs visible on the WHOIS directory record for that block. 

IPv6
6.5.5.3. Residential Subscribers
6.5.5.3.1. Residential Customer Privacy

To maintain the privacy of their residential customers, an organization with downstream residential customers holding /64 and larger blocks may substitute that organization's name for the customer's name, e.g. 'Private Customer - XYZ Network', and the customer's street address may read 'Private Residence'. Each private downstream residential reassignment must have accurate upstream Abuse and Technical POCs visible on the WHOIS record for that block.

--Heather

-----Original Message-----
From: Constantine A. Murenin [mailto:mureninc at gmail.com] 
Sent: Saturday, December 08, 2012 12:46 AM
To: nanog at nanog.org
Subject: Why do some providers require IPv6 /64 PA space to have public whois?

Hello,

I personally don't understand this policy.  I've signed up with hetzner.de, and I'm trying to get IPv6; however, on the supplementary page where the complementary IPv6 /64 subnet can be requested (notice that it's not even a /48, and not even the second, routed, /64), after I change the selection from requesting one additional IPv4 address to requesting the IPv6 /64 subnet (they offer no other IPv6 options in that menu), they use DOM to remove the IP address justification field ("Purpose of use"), and instead statically show my name, physical street address (including the apartment number), email address and phone number, and ask to confirm that all of this information can be submitted to RIPE.

They offer no option of modifying any of this; they also offer no option of hiding the street address and showing it as "Private Address" instead; they also offer no option of providing contact information different from the contact details for the main profile or keeping a separate set of contact details in the main profile specifically for RIPE; they also offer no option of providing a RIPE handle instead (dunno if one can be registered with a "Private Address" address, showing only city/state/country and postal code; I do know that with ARIN and PA IPv4 subnets you can do "Private Address" in the Address field); they also don't let you submit the form unless you agree for the information shown to be passed along to RIPE for getting IPv6 connectivity (again, no IPv6 is provided by default or otherwise).

Is this what we're going towards?  No probable cause and no court orders for obtaining individually identifying information about internet customers with IPv6 addresses?  In the future, will the copyright trolls be getting this information directly from public whois, bypassing the internet provider abuse teams and even the most minimal court supervision?  Is this really the disadvantage of IPv4 that IPv6 proudly fixes?  I certainly have never heard of whois entries for /32 IPv4 address allocations!

Anyhow, just one more provider where it's easier to use HE's tunnelbroker.net instead of obtaining IPv6 natively; due to the data-mining and privacy concerns now.  What's the point of native IPv6 connectivity again?  In hetzner.de terms, tunnelbroker.net even provides you with the failover IPv6 address(es), something that they themselves only offer for IPv4!

Is it just me, or are there a lot of other folks who use tunnelbroker.net even when their ISP offers native IPv6 support?
Might be interesting for HE.net to make some kind of a study. :-)

Cheers,
Constantine.