<s>
Verisign	B-Application
Inc	I-Application
.	I-Application
is	O
an	O
American	O
company	O
based	O
in	O
Reston	O
,	O
Virginia	B-Application
,	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
that	O
operates	O
a	O
diverse	O
array	O
of	O
network	O
infrastructure	O
,	O
including	O
two	O
of	O
the	O
Internet	O
's	O
thirteen	O
root	B-Application
nameservers	I-Application
,	O
the	O
authoritative	O
registry	O
for	O
the	O
,	O
,	O
and	O
generic	O
top-level	O
domains	O
and	O
the	O
country-code	B-Application
top-level	I-Application
domains	I-Application
,	O
and	O
the	O
back-end	O
systems	O
for	O
the	O
and	O
sponsored	O
top-level	O
domains	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2010	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
sold	O
its	O
authentication	O
business	O
unit	O
–	O
which	O
included	O
Secure	B-Protocol
Sockets	I-Protocol
Layer	I-Protocol
(	O
SSL	O
)	O
certificate	O
,	O
public	B-Architecture
key	I-Architecture
infrastructure	I-Architecture
(	O
PKI	O
)	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
Trust	O
Seal	O
,	O
and	O
Verisign	B-Application
Identity	O
Protection	O
(	O
VIP	O
)	O
services	O
–	O
to	O
Symantec	O
for	O
$1.28	O
billion	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
deal	O
capped	O
a	O
multi-year	O
effort	O
by	O
Verisign	B-Application
to	O
narrow	O
its	O
focus	O
to	O
its	O
core	O
infrastructure	O
and	O
security	O
business	O
units	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
October	O
25	O
,	O
2018	O
,	O
NeuStar	B-Protocol
,	I-Protocol
Inc	I-Protocol
.	I-Protocol
acquired	O
VeriSign	B-Application
’s	O
Security	O
Service	O
Customer	O
Contracts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
acquisition	O
effectively	O
transferred	O
Verisign	O
Inc.	O
’	O
s	O
Distributed	O
Denial	O
of	O
Service	O
(	O
DDoS	O
)	O
protection	O
,	O
Managed	O
DNS	B-Protocol
,	O
DNS	B-Protocol
Firewall	O
and	O
fee-based	O
Recursive	O
DNS	B-Protocol
services	O
customer	O
contracts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
's	O
former	O
chief	O
financial	O
officer	O
(	O
CFO	O
)	O
Brian	O
Robins	O
announced	O
in	O
August	O
2010	O
that	O
the	O
company	O
would	O
move	O
from	O
its	O
original	O
location	O
of	O
Mountain	O
View	O
,	O
California	O
,	O
to	O
Dulles	O
in	O
Northern	O
Virginia	B-Application
by	O
2011	O
due	O
to	O
95%	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
business	O
being	O
on	O
the	O
East	O
Coast	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
was	O
founded	O
in	O
1995	O
as	O
a	O
spin-off	O
of	O
the	O
RSA	O
Security	O
certification	O
services	O
business	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
new	O
company	O
served	O
as	O
a	O
certificate	B-Architecture
authority	I-Architecture
(	O
CA	O
)	O
and	O
its	O
initial	O
mission	O
was	O
"	O
providing	O
trust	O
for	O
the	O
Internet	O
and	O
Electronic	O
Commerce	O
through	O
our	O
Digital	O
Authentication	O
services	O
and	O
products	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prior	O
to	O
selling	O
its	O
certificate	O
business	O
to	O
Symantec	O
in	O
2010	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
had	O
more	O
than	O
3	O
million	O
certificates	O
in	O
operation	O
for	O
everything	O
from	O
military	O
to	O
financial	O
services	O
and	O
retail	O
applications	O
,	O
making	O
it	O
the	O
largest	O
CA	O
in	O
the	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2000	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
acquired	O
Network	O
Solutions	O
,	O
which	O
operated	O
the	O
,	O
and	O
TLDs	O
under	O
agreements	O
with	O
the	O
Internet	B-Application
Corporation	I-Application
for	I-Application
Assigned	I-Application
Names	I-Application
and	I-Application
Numbers	I-Application
(	O
ICANN	B-Application
)	O
and	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
Department	O
of	O
Commerce	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Those	O
core	O
registry	O
functions	O
formed	O
the	O
basis	O
for	O
Verisign	B-Application
's	O
naming	O
division	O
,	O
which	O
by	O
then	O
had	O
become	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
largest	O
and	O
most	O
significant	O
business	O
unit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2002	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
was	O
charged	O
with	O
violation	O
of	O
the	O
Securities	O
Exchange	O
Act	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
divested	O
the	O
Network	O
Solutions	O
retail	O
(	O
domain	B-Application
name	I-Application
registrar	I-Application
)	O
business	O
in	O
2003	O
,	O
retaining	O
the	O
domain	B-Protocol
name	I-Protocol
registry	I-Protocol
(	O
wholesale	O
)	O
function	O
as	O
its	O
core	O
Internet	O
addressing	O
business	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
the	O
year	O
ended	O
December	O
31	O
,	O
2010	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
reported	O
revenue	O
of	O
$681	O
million	O
,	O
up	O
10%	O
from	O
$616	O
million	O
in	O
2009	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
operates	O
two	O
businesses	O
,	O
Naming	O
Services	O
,	O
which	O
encompasses	O
the	O
operation	O
of	O
top-level	O
domains	O
and	O
critical	O
Internet	O
infrastructure	O
,	O
and	O
Network	O
Intelligence	O
and	O
Availability	O
(	O
NIA	O
)	O
Services	O
,	O
which	O
encompasses	O
DDoS	O
mitigation	O
,	O
managed	O
DNS	B-Protocol
and	O
threat	O
intelligence	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
9	O
,	O
2010	O
,	O
Symantec	O
completed	O
its	O
approximately	O
$1.28	O
billion	O
acquisition	O
of	O
Verisign	B-Application
's	O
authentication	O
business	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
Secure	B-Protocol
Sockets	I-Protocol
Layer	I-Protocol
(	O
SSL	O
)	O
Certificate	O
Services	O
,	O
the	O
Public	B-Architecture
Key	I-Architecture
Infrastructure	I-Architecture
(	O
PKI	O
)	O
Services	O
,	O
the	O
Verisign	B-Application
Trust	O
Services	O
,	O
the	O
Verisign	B-Application
Identity	O
Protection	O
(	O
VIP	O
)	O
Authentication	O
Service	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
majority	O
stake	O
in	O
Verisign	B-Application
Japan	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
deal	O
capped	O
a	O
multi-year	O
effort	O
by	O
Verisign	B-Application
to	O
narrow	O
its	O
focus	O
to	O
its	O
core	O
infrastructure	O
and	O
security	O
business	O
units	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
ongoing	O
controversies	O
regarding	O
Symantec	O
's	O
handling	O
of	O
certificate	O
validation	O
,	O
which	O
culminated	O
in	O
Google	B-Application
untrusting	O
Symantec-issued	O
certificates	O
in	O
its	O
Chrome	B-Application
web	I-Application
browser	I-Application
,	O
Symantec	O
sold	O
this	O
unit	O
to	O
DigiCert	O
in	O
2017	O
for	O
$950	O
Million	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2011	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
was	O
selected	O
by	O
the	O
General	O
Services	O
Administration	O
(	O
GSA	O
)	O
to	O
operate	O
the	O
registry	O
services	O
for	O
the	O
top-level	O
domain	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
continued	O
to	O
operate	O
service	O
until	O
2023	O
,	O
when	O
Cybersecurity	O
and	O
Infrastructure	O
Security	O
Agency	O
(	O
CISA	O
)	O
chose	O
Cloudflare	B-Application
to	O
replace	O
Verisign	B-Application
as	O
the	O
.gov	O
operator	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
's	O
share	O
price	O
tumbled	O
in	O
early	O
2014	O
,	O
hastened	O
by	O
the	O
U.S.	O
government	O
's	O
announcement	O
that	O
it	O
would	O
"	O
relinquish	O
oversight	O
of	O
the	O
Internet	O
's	O
domain-naming	O
system	O
to	O
a	O
non-government	O
entity	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ultimately	O
ICANN	B-Application
chose	O
to	O
continue	O
VeriSign	B-Application
's	O
role	O
as	O
the	O
root	O
zone	O
maintainer	O
and	O
the	O
two	O
entered	O
into	O
a	O
new	O
contract	O
in	O
2016	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
's	O
core	O
business	O
is	O
its	O
naming	O
services	O
division	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
division	O
operates	O
the	O
authoritative	O
domain	B-Protocol
name	I-Protocol
registries	I-Protocol
for	O
two	O
of	O
the	O
Internet	O
's	O
most	O
important	O
top-level	O
domains	O
,	O
and	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
also	O
the	O
contracted	O
registry	B-Protocol
operator	I-Protocol
for	O
the	O
.name	O
and	O
.gov	O
top-level	O
domains	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
country	B-Application
code	I-Application
top-level	I-Application
domains	I-Application
(	O
Cocos	O
Islands	O
)	O
and	O
(	O
Tuvalu	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
is	O
the	O
primary	O
technical	O
subcontractor	O
for	O
the	O
,	O
and	O
top-level	O
domains	O
for	O
their	O
respective	O
registry	B-Protocol
operators	I-Protocol
,	O
which	O
are	O
non-profit	O
organizations	O
;	O
in	O
this	O
role	O
Verisign	B-Application
maintains	O
the	O
zone	B-Protocol
files	I-Protocol
for	O
these	O
particular	O
domains	O
and	O
hosts	O
the	O
domains	O
from	O
their	O
domain	O
servers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Registry	B-Protocol
operators	I-Protocol
are	O
the	O
"	O
wholesalers	O
"	O
of	O
Internet	O
domain	O
names	O
,	O
while	O
domain	B-Application
name	I-Application
registrars	I-Application
act	O
as	O
the	O
“	O
retailers	O
”	O
,	O
working	O
directly	O
with	O
consumers	O
to	O
register	O
a	O
domain	O
name	O
address	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
also	O
operates	O
two	O
of	O
the	O
Internet	O
's	O
thirteen	O
"	O
root	B-Application
servers	I-Application
"	O
which	O
are	O
identified	O
by	O
the	O
letters	O
A-M	O
(	O
Verisign	B-Application
operates	O
the	O
“	O
A	O
”	O
and	O
“	O
J	O
”	O
root	B-Application
servers	I-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
root	B-Application
servers	I-Application
form	O
the	O
top	O
of	O
the	O
hierarchical	O
Domain	B-Protocol
Name	I-Protocol
System	I-Protocol
that	O
supports	O
most	O
modern	O
Internet	O
communication	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
also	O
generates	O
the	O
globally	O
recognized	O
root	O
zone	B-Protocol
file	I-Protocol
and	O
is	O
also	O
responsible	O
for	O
processing	O
changes	O
to	O
that	O
file	O
once	O
they	O
are	O
ordered	O
by	O
ICANN	B-Application
via	O
IANA	O
and	O
approved	O
by	O
the	O
U.S.	O
Department	O
of	O
Commerce	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Changes	O
to	O
the	O
root	O
zone	O
were	O
originally	O
distributed	O
via	O
the	O
A	O
root	B-Application
server	I-Application
,	O
but	O
now	O
they	O
are	O
distributed	O
to	O
all	O
thirteen	O
servers	O
via	O
a	O
separate	O
distribution	O
system	O
which	O
Verisign	B-Application
maintains	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
is	O
the	O
only	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
12	O
root	B-Application
server	I-Application
operators	O
to	O
operate	O
more	O
than	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
thirteen	O
root	B-Application
nameservers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
A	O
and	O
J	O
root	B-Application
servers	I-Application
are	O
"	O
anycasted	O
”	O
and	O
are	O
no	O
longer	O
operated	O
from	O
any	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
own	O
datacenters	O
as	O
a	O
means	O
to	O
increase	O
redundancy	O
and	O
availability	O
and	O
mitigate	O
the	O
threat	O
of	O
a	O
single	B-Architecture
point	I-Architecture
of	I-Architecture
failure	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2016	O
,	O
the	O
Department	O
of	O
Commerce	O
ended	O
its	O
role	O
in	O
managing	O
the	O
Internet	O
's	O
DNS	B-Protocol
and	O
transferred	O
full	O
control	O
to	O
ICANN	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
this	O
initially	O
negatively	O
impacted	O
VeriSign	B-Application
's	O
stock	O
,	O
ICANN	B-Application
eventually	O
chose	O
to	O
contract	O
with	O
Verisign	B-Application
to	O
continue	O
its	O
role	O
as	O
the	O
root	O
zone	O
maintainer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VeriSign	B-Application
's	O
naming	O
services	O
division	O
dates	O
back	O
to	O
1993	O
when	O
Network	O
Solutions	O
was	O
awarded	O
a	O
contract	O
by	O
the	O
National	O
Science	O
Foundation	O
to	O
manage	O
and	O
operate	O
the	O
civilian	O
side	O
of	O
the	O
Internet	O
's	O
domain	B-Protocol
name	I-Protocol
registrations	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Network	O
Solutions	O
was	O
the	O
sole	O
registrar	O
for	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
Internet	O
's	O
non-governmental	O
generic	O
top-level	O
domains	O
until	O
1998	O
when	O
ICANN	B-Application
was	O
established	O
and	O
the	O
new	O
system	O
of	O
competitive	O
registrars	O
was	O
implemented	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
divisions	O
were	O
even	O
geographically	O
split	O
with	O
the	O
NSI	O
Registry	O
moving	O
from	O
the	O
corporate	O
headquarters	O
in	O
Herndon	O
,	O
Virginia	B-Application
,	O
to	O
nearby	O
Dulles	O
,	O
Virginia	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2000	O
,	O
VeriSign	B-Application
purchased	O
Network	O
Solutions	O
taking	O
over	O
its	O
role	O
in	O
the	O
Internet	O
's	O
DNS	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
NSI	O
Registry	O
division	O
eventually	O
became	O
VeriSign	B-Application
's	O
naming	O
services	O
division	O
while	O
the	O
remainder	O
of	O
Network	O
Solutions	O
was	O
later	O
sold	O
by	O
Verisign	B-Application
in	O
2003	O
to	O
Pivotal	O
Equity	O
Group	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
sale	O
of	O
its	O
authentication	O
services	O
division	O
in	O
2010	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
relocated	O
from	O
its	O
former	O
headquarters	O
in	O
Mountain	O
View	O
,	O
California	O
,	O
to	O
the	O
headquarters	O
of	O
the	O
naming	O
division	O
in	O
Sterling	O
,	O
Virginia	B-Application
(	O
originally	O
NSI	O
Registry	O
's	O
headquarters	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
began	O
shopping	O
that	O
year	O
for	O
a	O
new	O
permanent	O
home	O
shortly	O
after	O
moving	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
to	O
its	O
Reston	O
headquarters	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
owns	O
three	O
data	O
center	O
properties	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
at	O
22340	O
Dresden	O
Street	O
in	O
Dulles	O
,	O
Virginia	B-Application
,	O
not	O
far	O
from	O
its	O
corporate	O
headquarters	O
(	O
within	O
the	O
large	O
Broad	O
Run	O
Technology	O
Park	O
)	O
,	O
one	O
at	O
21	O
Boulden	O
Circle	O
in	O
New	O
Castle	O
,	O
Delaware	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
third	O
in	O
Fribourg	O
,	O
Switzerland	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
also	O
leases	O
an	O
office	O
suite	O
in	O
downtown	O
Washington	O
,	O
D.C.	O
,	O
on	O
K	O
street	O
where	O
its	O
government	O
relations	O
office	O
is	O
located	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
has	O
leased	O
server	O
space	O
in	O
numerous	O
internet	O
data	O
centers	O
around	O
the	O
world	O
where	O
the	O
DNS	B-Protocol
constellation	O
resolution	O
sites	O
are	O
located	O
,	O
mostly	O
at	O
major	O
internet	O
peering	O
facilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
such	O
facility	O
is	O
at	O
the	O
Equinix	O
Ashburn	O
Datacenter	O
in	O
Ashburn	O
,	O
Virginia	B-Application
,	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
world	O
's	O
largest	O
datacenters	O
and	O
internet	O
transit	O
hubs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2001	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
mistakenly	O
issued	O
two	O
Class	O
3	O
code	O
signing	O
certificates	O
to	O
an	O
individual	O
claiming	O
to	O
be	O
an	O
employee	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
Verisign	B-Application
code-signing	O
certificates	O
do	O
not	O
specify	O
a	O
Certificate	O
Revocation	O
List	O
Distribution	O
Point	O
,	O
there	O
was	O
no	O
way	O
for	O
them	O
to	O
be	O
automatically	O
detected	O
as	O
having	O
been	O
revoked	O
,	O
placing	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
customers	O
at	O
risk	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2002	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
was	O
sued	O
for	O
domain	O
slamming	O
–	O
transferring	O
domains	O
from	O
other	O
registrars	O
to	O
themselves	O
by	O
making	O
the	O
registrants	O
believe	O
they	O
were	O
merely	O
renewing	O
their	O
domain	O
name	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2003	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
introduced	O
a	O
service	O
called	O
Site	B-Protocol
Finder	I-Protocol
,	O
which	O
redirected	O
Web	O
browsers	O
to	O
a	O
search	O
service	O
when	O
users	O
attempted	O
to	O
go	O
to	O
non-existent	O
or	O
domain	O
names	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
ICANN	B-Application
asserted	O
that	O
Verisign	B-Application
had	O
overstepped	O
the	O
terms	O
of	O
its	O
contract	O
with	O
the	O
U.S.	O
Department	O
of	O
Commerce	O
,	O
which	O
in	O
essence	O
grants	O
Verisign	B-Application
the	O
right	O
to	O
operate	O
the	O
DNS	B-Protocol
for	O
and	O
,	O
and	O
Verisign	B-Application
shut	O
down	O
the	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Subsequently	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
filed	O
a	O
lawsuit	O
against	O
ICANN	B-Application
in	O
February	O
2004	O
,	O
seeking	O
to	O
gain	O
clarity	O
over	O
what	O
services	O
it	O
could	O
offer	O
in	O
the	O
context	O
of	O
its	O
contract	O
with	O
ICANN	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
late	O
2005	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
and	O
ICANN	B-Application
announced	O
a	O
proposed	O
settlement	O
which	O
defined	O
a	O
process	O
for	O
the	O
introduction	O
of	O
new	O
registry	O
services	O
in	O
the	O
registry	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
documents	O
concerning	O
these	O
settlements	O
are	O
available	O
at	O
ICANN.org	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ICANN	B-Application
comments	O
mailing	O
list	O
archive	O
documents	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
criticisms	O
that	O
have	O
been	O
raised	O
regarding	O
the	O
settlement	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
was	O
involved	O
in	O
the	O
matter	O
decided	O
by	O
the	O
Ninth	O
Circuit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
keeping	O
with	O
ICANN	B-Application
's	O
charter	O
to	O
introduce	O
competition	O
to	O
the	O
domain	O
name	O
marketplace	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
agreed	O
to	O
give	O
up	O
its	O
operation	O
of	O
top-level	O
domain	O
in	O
2003	O
in	O
exchange	O
for	O
a	O
continuation	O
of	O
its	O
contract	O
to	O
operate	O
,	O
which	O
,	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
had	O
more	O
than	O
34	O
million	O
registered	O
addresses	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
mid-2005	O
,	O
the	O
existing	O
contract	O
for	O
the	O
operation	O
of	O
expired	O
and	O
five	O
companies	O
,	O
including	O
Verisign	B-Application
,	O
bid	O
for	O
management	O
of	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
enlisted	O
numerous	O
IT	O
and	O
telecom	O
heavyweights	O
including	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
IBM	O
,	O
Sun	O
Microsystems	O
,	O
MCI	O
,	O
and	O
others	O
,	O
to	O
assert	O
that	O
Verisign	B-Application
had	O
a	O
perfect	O
record	O
operating	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
proposed	O
Verisign	B-Application
continue	O
to	O
manage	O
the	O
DNS	B-Protocol
due	O
to	O
its	O
critical	O
importance	O
as	O
the	O
domain	O
underlying	O
numerous	O
"	O
backbone	O
"	O
network	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
was	O
also	O
aided	O
by	O
the	O
fact	O
that	O
several	O
of	O
the	O
other	O
bidders	O
were	O
based	O
outside	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
which	O
raised	O
concerns	O
in	O
national	O
security	O
circles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
June	O
8	O
,	O
2005	O
,	O
ICANN	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
Verisign	B-Application
had	O
been	O
approved	O
to	O
operate	O
until	O
2011	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
More	O
information	O
on	O
the	O
bidding	O
process	O
is	O
available	O
at	O
ICANN	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
July	O
1	O
,	O
2011	O
,	O
ICANN	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
VeriSign	B-Application
's	O
approval	O
to	O
operate	O
.net	B-Application
was	O
extended	O
another	O
six	O
years	O
,	O
until	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2012	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
revealed	O
that	O
their	O
network	O
security	O
had	O
been	O
repeatedly	O
breached	O
in	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
stated	O
that	O
the	O
breach	O
did	O
not	O
impact	O
the	O
Domain	B-Protocol
Name	I-Protocol
System	I-Protocol
(	O
DNS	B-Protocol
)	O
that	O
they	O
maintain	O
,	O
but	O
would	O
not	O
provide	O
details	O
about	O
the	O
loss	O
of	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Verisign	B-Application
was	O
widely	O
criticized	O
for	O
not	O
disclosing	O
the	O
breach	O
earlier	O
and	O
apparently	O
attempting	O
to	O
hide	O
the	O
news	O
in	O
an	O
October	O
2011	O
SEC	O
filing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
of	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
details	O
provided	O
by	O
Verisign	B-Application
,	O
it	O
was	O
not	O
clear	O
whether	O
the	O
breach	O
impacted	O
the	O
certificate	O
signing	O
business	O
,	O
acquired	O
by	O
Symantec	O
in	O
late	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Oliver	O
Lavery	O
,	O
the	O
Director	O
of	O
Security	O
and	O
Research	O
for	O
nCircle	O
,	O
doubted	O
whether	O
sites	O
using	O
Verisign	B-Application
SSL	O
certificates	O
could	O
be	O
trusted	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
registry	B-Protocol
operator	I-Protocol
for	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
performed	O
the	O
required	O
takedowns	O
of	O
the	O
82	O
sites	O
under	O
order	O
from	O
law	O
enforcement	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
InformationWeek	O
reported	O
that	O
"	O
Verisign	B-Application
will	O
say	O
only	O
that	O
it	O
received	O
sealed	O
court	O
orders	O
directing	O
certain	O
actions	O
to	O
be	O
taken	O
with	O
respect	O
to	O
specific	O
domain	O
names	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
removal	O
of	O
the	O
82	O
websites	O
was	O
cited	O
as	O
an	O
impetus	O
for	O
the	O
launch	O
of	O
"	O
the	O
Dot-P2P	O
Project	O
"	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
create	O
a	O
decentralized	O
DNS	B-Protocol
service	O
without	O
centralized	O
registry	B-Protocol
operators	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
disappearance	O
of	O
WikiLeaks	O
during	O
the	O
following	O
week	O
and	O
its	O
forced	O
move	O
to	O
wikileaks.ch,	O
a	O
Swiss	O
domain	O
,	O
the	O
Electronic	O
Frontier	O
Foundation	O
warned	O
of	O
the	O
dangers	O
of	O
having	O
key	O
pieces	O
of	O
Internet	O
infrastructure	O
such	O
as	O
DNS	B-Protocol
name	I-Protocol
translation	O
under	O
corporate	O
control	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
U.S.	O
government	O
can	O
seize	O
the	O
domains	O
ending	O
in	O
,	O
,	O
,	O
,	O
and	O
by	O
serving	O
a	O
court-order	O
on	O
Verisign	B-Application
,	O
which	O
manages	O
those	O
domains	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
domain	O
is	O
managed	O
by	O
the	O
Virginia-based	O
non-profit	O
Public	O
Interest	O
Registry	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2012	O
,	O
Verisign	B-Application
shut	O
down	O
the	O
sports-betting	O
site	O
Bodog.com	O
after	O
receiving	O
a	O
court	O
order	O
,	O
even	O
though	O
the	O
domain	O
name	O
was	O
registered	O
to	O
a	O
Canadian	O
company	O
.	O
</s>
