Afilias Joins MAAWG as First Domain Name Registry Member

Membership to Enhance .INFO Domain Anti-Abuse Policy and Industry Cooperation

April 28, 2009; 06:33 AM

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-Afilias, a global provider of Internet infrastructure services, today announced that it has joined the Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group (MAAWG) as part of its ongoing domain name anti-abuse efforts. Afilias is the first domain name registry operator to become a member. MAAWG is the premiere global organization focusing on protecting electronic messaging from online exploits and abuse, with the goal of enhancing user trust and confidence.

“We are pleased to welcome Afilias as a member of MAAWG and welcome their contributions and domain name industry intelligence,” said Jerry Upton, MAAWG Executive Director.

Afilias has successfully curbed abusive use of .INFO domain names by rigorously monitoring domains and enforcing its pioneering Anti-Abuse Policy. In 2008, .INFO was among the “least-phished-in” large domains according to studies by the Anti-Phishing Working Group. Afilias’ membership in MAAWG will further enhance its ability to fight domain name abuses such as spam and phishing within .INFO.

“Given the pervasiveness of criminal activity on the Internet, it’s essential to collaborate with other like-minded, responsible companies such as those in MAAWG,” said Greg Aaron, Director of Domain Security for Afilias. “Afilias is already working with innovative MAAWG members to identify and address spamming. And MAAWG gives us an effective forum in which to share our own unique registry expertise, thereby strengthening security across the Internet.”

About the Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group (MAAWG)

The Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group (MAAWG) is where the messaging industry comes together to work against spam, viruses, denial-of-service attacks and other online exploitation. MAAWG (www.MAAWG.org) represents almost one billion mailboxes from some of the largest network operators worldwide. It is the only organization addressing messaging abuse holistically by systematically engaging all aspects of the problem, including technology, industry collaboration and public policy. MAAWG leverages the depth and experience of its global membership to tackle abuse on existing networks and new emerging services. Headquartered in San Francisco, Calif., MAAWG is an open forum driven by market needs and supported by major network operators and messaging providers.

About .INFO

.INFO was the first generic, unrestricted TLD to be launched since .com. Registrations in .INFO first became available in 2001. Since then, .INFO has grown to become the fourth-largest gTLD in the world. Domains are currently available in ten Internationalized Domain Name (IDN) scripts. For more information please visit www.info.info

About Afilias

Afilias is a global provider of Internet infrastructure services that connect people to their data. Afilias’ reliable, secure, scalable, and globally available technology supports a wide range of applications including Internet domain registry services, Managed DNS, and services in the RFID and supply chain market with its Afilias Discovery Services. For more information on Afilias please visit www.afilias.info.

Source: www.businesswire.com