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The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has released the agenda for the 2023 Middle East Domain Name System (DNS) Forum, to be held 9 and 10 May at the Wyndham Grand Istanbul Levent in Istanbul, Republic of Türkiye.
The hybrid event offers participants a closer look at the DNS industry in the Middle East. Panel sessions will offer a wide range of topics highlighting women in cybersecurity, "tech talks" on topics like DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC), and the ICANN-sponsored program Knowledge-sharing and Instantiating Norms for DNS and Naming Security (KINDNS). Other topics will include discussions on Universal Acceptance (UA) and country code top-level domains (ccTLDs) in the digital transformation era. The forum provides a dynamic platform to explore topics related to the latest developments in the domain name industry for the region.
Ömer Abdullah Karagözoğlu, Board Chair and President, Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) of the Republic of Türkiye will open the event. He will be joined by Baher Esmat, ICANN's Vice President, Stakeholder Engagement – Middle East and Managing Director, Middle East and Africa. The first day of the event also features ICANN's Chief Technology Officer, John Crain, who will share insights about how the DNS is evolving to keep pace with the development of new Internet-related technologies.
In the afternoon, four women will share the stage: Ayşim Niksarlı, Director, Cyber Security Consultancy Services at Forcerta, Samaneh Tajalizadehkhoob, Director of Security, Stability and Resiliency Research at ICANN, Başak Gencer, Cybersecurity Senior Manager at Vodafone Türkiye, and Nermine El Saadany, Vice President of the Internet Society's Middle East Bureau. They will share their experiences as leaders in an industry dominated by men and discuss initiatives aimed at enhancing cyber resilience.
On the second day of the forum, participants will hear from a panel session highlighting global efforts in progressing UA for domain names and email addresses. Panelists will discuss the importance of the UA initiatives to help bring the next billion people online. The panel will feature Edmon Chung, ICANN Board Director and Chair of the ICANN Board's Internationalized Domain Names and UA Working Group.
Another session on the second day focuses on Internet fragmentation – what it means and how it could potentially impact the single, global, and interoperable Internet that we enjoy today. The panel is moderated by Mehmet Bedii Kaya, Director of the Bilgi University Information Technology Law Institute.
The forum will provide ample opportunity for meaningful discussions among participants. Hosted by ICANN, this year's Middle East DNS Forum is sponsored by the Public Interest Registry and supported by BThaber.
To learn more and to register visit www.mednsf.org.