VeriSign/Network Solutions' recent actions to effectively "hijack" all unused domain names in the ".COM" and ".NET" TLDs (Top Level Domains) for their "Site Finder" service, unilaterally and without prior warning or consultation with the Internet technical or policy communities, represent an arrogant and dangerous abuse of their vested, dominant, special position, and have vast policy, legal, and technical implications.

These actions demonstrate a profound failure of judgment and management on the part of VeriSign/NSI.

We call on VeriSign/NSI to immediately disable their DNS changes related to their Site Finder service, and further suggest that if VeriSign/NSI is unwilling to terminate the service voluntarily that they should be ordered to do so immediately by the appropriate authorities.

We further believe that VeriSign/NSI's deployment of their Site Finder service represents gross and dangerous negligence relating to their stewardship of the Internet infrastructure, and that VeriSign/NSI has now clearly demonstrated their utter unsuitability for a continuing role relating to Internet domain/DNS operations or related services in any manner.

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Lauren Weinstein
lauren@pfir.org or lauren@vortex.com or lauren@privacyforum.org
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800
Co-Founder, PFIR - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
Co-Founder, URIICA - Union for Representative International Internet
     Cooperation and Analysis - www.uriica.org
Moderator, PRIVACY Forum - http://www.vortex.com
Member, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
http://www.pfir.org/lauren

Peter G. Neumann
neumann@pfir.org or neumann@csl.sri.com or neumann@risks.org
Tel: +1 (650) 859-2375
Co-Founder, PFIR - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
Co-Founder, URIICA - Union for Representative International Internet
     Cooperation and Analysis - www.uriica.org
Moderator, RISKS Forum - http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks
Chairman, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
http://www.csl.sri.com/neumann

David J. Farber
dave@farber.net
Tel: +1 (412) 726-9889
Distinguished Career Professor of Computer Science and Public Policy,
     Carnegie Mellon University, School of Computer Science
Member of the Board of Trustees EFF - www.eff.org
Member of the Advisory Board -- EPIC - www.epic.org
Member of the Advisory Board -- CDT - www.cdt.org
Member of Board of Directors -- PFIR - www.pfir.org
Co-Founder, URIICA - Union for Representative International Internet
     Cooperation and Analysis - www.uriica.org
Member of the Executive Committee USACM
www.cis.upenn.edu/~farber

(Affiliations shown for identification only.)