Privacy & Proxy Services Accreditation Issues

[Greg McMullen <greg@xxxxxxxxxx>]

My name is Greg McMullen. I am a lawyer in Vancouver, British Columbia,
Canada. I am also Chief Policy Officer for ascribe GmbH (
https://www.ascribe.io), and make these submissions on behalf of ascribe
GmbH.

I am writing to encourage ICANN to reject the recommendations of the
Privacy & Proxy Services Accreditation Issues Working Group (the “Working
Group”) regarding the limitation of availability of proxy registration to
non-commercial entities, and the mandatory disclosure of personal
information by proxy providers to third parties upon the third party’s
allegation of intellectual property infringement.

In particular:

1. The proposals from the Working Group do not adequately address concerns
about user privacy and the risks involved in having personal information
publicly available in WHOIS, especially address and contact information.
Over the past two years, high profile incidents have made clear the extent
and impact of online harassment on internet users. If their contact
information is publicly available on WHOIS, registrants are at increased
risk of harassment, threats of violence, and SWATing. Proxy registration
does not solve the problem of online harassment, but it can offer some
safety to its victims.

2. The proposals from the Working Group do not acknowledge the impact
privacy risks can have on speech online. Proxy registration allows people
to voice unpopular or controversial opinions online while mitigating the
risk of harassment inherent to voicing those opinions.

3. The proposals from the Working Group do not adequately protect users of
proxy services from intellectual property trolling. Any disclosure of
personal information from proxy providers to third parties should be
subject to oversight. Legal systems around the world already provide a
process by which personal information can be obtained, and disclosure of
personal information is regularly ordered by courts, but subject to
judicial oversight. These established systems and oversight mechanisms
should not be usurped by ICANN policy.

I encourage ICANN to reject the proposals of the Working Group.

Regards,

Greg McMullen
Chief Policy Officer
ascribe GmbH