Dropping support for the .ru top level domain

Mon Mar 14 17:01:50 UTC 2022

On Mar 12, 2022, at 5:47 AM, Patrick Bryant <patrick at pbryant.com> wrote:
> 
> I don't like the idea of disrupting any Internet service. 

I certainly agree with that.

Removing .ru from the root name servers will most certainly be as effective as removing certain words from dictionaries to prevent their use.

As to the former, establishment of local servers with .ru re-inserted is not only technically feasible, but not particularly expensive. There is some history of alternate root server establishment. There are other likely ways to distribute layer 3 address including, for example, social media, 

As to the latter, most of us learn a extensive vocabulary long before gaining the ability to read dictionaries or even graffiti.

My point is that this kind of “security through obscurity” may play well to newshounds and politicians, but has no practical effect. Disruption of a common robust name to layer 3 address lookup will increase operational costs without commensurate results.