[db-wg] Locking unmaintained PERSON and ROLE objects in the RIPE Database

Dear colleagues,

The RIPE NCC Executive Board (EB) endorsed a proposal on how to deal with a vulnerability for RIPE Database users. Following their advice, the RIPE NCC proactively locked 848,986 unmaintained PERSON objects and 1,206 unmaintained ROLE objects on 6 April 2016.

Since reaching the last /8, IPv4 address space has become more susceptible to hijacking. Unmaintained PERSON and ROLE objects are highly at risk of being found and hijacked. In addition, unmaintained PERSON and ROLE objects are an issue with regards to data protection obligations.

The potential impact of abuse led us to consult with the EB on this intermediary solution before engaging with the community on the next steps. Exposing this issue without taking adequate measures would have left the RIPE NCC liable to third party damages.

The proposed solution we outline below is a starting point, to be discussed by the community.


Background:
===========

Since 2010 it has been mandatory to protect PERSON and ROLE objects in the RIPE Database using a maintainer on "mnt-by:". A large number of PERSON and ROLE objects dating from before 2010 are still not protected in this way.

Objects can be created that reference these unmaintained objects, but doing so will generate a warning.

In recent years, given the scarcity of IPv4 address space, there is a higher risk of people searching for unmaintained PERSON or ROLE objects in order to pose as a resource holder to sell IPv4 space. In the case of legacy space, this could take place outside the view of the RIPE NCC if the address space is not registered with the RIPE NCC.


Proposal:
=========

1) All unmaintained ROLE and PERSON objects are now locked. As the RIPE NCC will not be able to correctly check all claims on unmaintained database objects, unlocking is not available. Offering to unlock these objects could leave the RIPE NCC liable to third party damages if due diligence is not followed.

2) Furthermore, the RIPE NCC modifies the existing warning about referencing unmaintained persons/roles to a similar warning about referencing locked persons/roles.

3a) The locked objects can remain as they are. In time, all locked PERSON or ROLE objects no longer referenced by other objects could be automatically deleted: the current thinking is a 180-day deletion timeout for these locked, unreferenced objects.

3b) If there is an operational need, new PERSON or ROLE objects should be created by the object owners. This solution puts control back into the hands of the object owners. The user can follow the existing process for creating and referencing new objects.
If there is a use case for supporting bulk migrations where a reference to a locked PERSON or ROLE object should be replaced, the RIPE NCC can create a wizard in the RIPE Database webupdates section of www.ripe.net <http://www.ripe.net/>.

We look forward to your feedback.

Kind regards,


Trudy Prins
Manager Software Engineering
RIPE NCC


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