DIDP Request #14: Keeping track of ICANN’s contracted parties: Registrars
In September 2016, we filed two separate DIDP requests regarding ICANN’s Contractual Compliance Goals.
The first one which we have written about here,[1] was regarding ICANN contracts with registries while the second one about registrars is briefed below. In our second request, we specifically asked for the following information:
- Copies of the registrar contractual compliance audit reports for all the audits carried out as well as external audit reports from the last year (2014-2015).
- A generic template of the notice served by ICANN before conducting such an audit.
- A list of the registrars to whom such notices were served in the last year.
- An account of the expenditure incurred by ICANN in carrying out the audit process.
- A list of the registrars that did not respond to the notice within a reasonable period of time.
- Reports of the site visits conducted by ICANN to ascertain compliance.
- Documents which identify the registrars who had committed material discrepancies in the terms of the contract.
- Documents pertaining to the actions taken in the event that there was found to be some form of contractual non-compliance.
- A copy of the registrar self-assessment form which is to be submitted to ICANN.
The DIDP request filed by Padmini Baruah can be viewed here.
What ICANN said
Information pertinent to item 1 and 3 can be found in the 2014 Contractual Compliance Annual Report here:https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/annual-2014-13feb15-en.pdf. While this report contains detailed information regarding the audit, individual audit reports are subject to the DIDP Defined Conditions for Nondisclosure.
ICANN provided a link to all the communication templates used during the audit process, including the notice served by ICANN prior to conducting audits. (Item 2) It can be found here: https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/audit-communication-template-04dec15-en.pdf. As mentioned in an earlier blog post, ICANN set aside USD 0.6 million for the Three Year Audit plan.[2] (item 4)
According to the Audit FAQ on ICANN website,[3] “If a contracted party reaches the enforcement phase per process, ICANN will issue a notice of breach in which the outstanding issues are noted. The response links us to the ICANN webpage where these breach notices are listed: https://www.icann.org/compliance/notices#notices-2014. (Item 5) According to the link, 61 registrars received breach notices in 2014; a full explanation has been provided for each notice. (Item 7 and 8) Since no site visits were conducted, ICANN does not possess any document regarding this.
According to the ICANN website, “The 2013 Registrar Accreditation Agreement (RAA) requires ICANN-accredited registrars to complete an annual self-assessment and provide ICANN with a compliance certification by 20 January.”[4] The form for the same can be found here: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/approved-with-specs-2013-09-17-en#compliance
ICANN’s response to our request can be found here.
[1] To be linked to the first post
[2] See FY15 budget (pg72): https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/adopted-opplan-budget-fy15-01dec14-en.pdf
[3] See Audit FAQ: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/faqs-2012-10-31-en
[4] See CEO certification: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/ceo-certification-2014-01-29-en
Author
Asvatha Babu
Asvatha Babu is a Master’s candidate in the International Communication program at American University's School of International Service in Washington D.C. Her research interests include using ICTs for inclusive development, internet governance and cyber security. Thus far, her work with CIS has dealt specifically with ICANN’s transparency and accountability policies. She tweets about tech and feminism at @fireflyclass.
