ICANN Contractual Compliance Dashboard Explanations

ICANN Contractual Compliance Monthly Dashboard Explanations

The monthly dashboard presents summarized data for the complaint type volume, informal and formal process volume and turnaround time.

Registrars / Registries

Three sections of data present the monthly complaint volume recorded against Registrars / Registries.

The pie chart presents a graphic breakdown of the complaint types.
Complaint Volume & Distribution:
- The volume of complaints received for the current month by complaint type.
- The volume of complaints closed before 1st Inquiry / Notice refers to complaints that are not sent to the Registrar or Registry Operator. A reason for closing a complaint before 1st Inquiry / Notice could be: complaint is invalid, a duplicate complaint is already open, requested evidence or additional information not provided by reporter, data changed, etc.
- The “Registrar Other” and the “Registry Other” complaint type is meant to be a catch all for the complaints that are not categorized in ICANN’s Complaint Submission web forms. A “Registrar Other” complaint may be about Web-Posting Obligations, self-registration, Whois Quality Review, etc. A “Registry Other” complaint may be about bulk registration data, problems related to Registry-Registrar Agreement amendments, registry operator change of control, etc.
The Compliance Process Volume & Turnaround Time - This is based on the Informal (1-2-3 Notifications) and the Formal (Breach, Suspension (Registrars only), Non-Renewal or Termination) processes. The volume is the number of complaints in each cycle. The Turnaround Time is an average count of the number of business days it takes a registrar to respond to any complaint in these process cycles.

Complaint Volume & Closure Rate

Volume Trend - A rolling thirteen month view of overall monthly complaint volume.
Total Volume - New complaints received and the total number of complaints closed in a month.
Closure Rate:
- Current Month - New complaints received and closed during the same month result in this Current Month closure rate. Current & prior month are reported.
- Received All - Complaints are received every day of the month. Not all complaints can be processed to closure in one month. Complaints carry-forward to the next month for processing. The Received All Closure Rate compares all complaints closed in a month regardless of when the complaint was received.
- Before first, second or third Notice - Complaints closed before being sent via a Notice are measured and displayed for these three conditions. Closure rate before first Notice means these complaints are resolved or rejected before sending to a Registrar/Registry. This is a direct result of the quality checks performed by ICANN’s Contractual Compliance department.

ICANN Staff Average Turnaround Time

ICANN Staff Turnaround Time - Turnaround Time starts the day the complaint notice is created and stops when the complaint status changes to closed. The internal Work In Progress queues measure ICANN time to advance or close the complaint in-between the 1-2-3 Notice process. Current and prior months are reported.

Contractual Compliance Overall Process Turnaround Time

The Received to Closed measure reflects the average time to work upon and close all complaints.

Additional Information on the Subject Matter of Complaints

ICANN Contractual Compliance has increased the level of granularity reported for the following complaint types: Abuse, Transfer, and WHOIS Inaccuracy. This new level of granularity is being reported as part of the monthly dashboard, beginning with the September 2017 reports. Some of the categories below contain commas, which are part of the descriptions, and will appear as such in the reported metrics. For instances where more than one of the categories applies to a complaint, these appear in the reported metrics separated by a pipe/vertical bar “|”. Below are definitions for these new categories.

Abuse:

Malware, Botnet – Complaints about websites that are allegedly hosting malware or domains that are botnet controllers.
Pharming, Phishing – Complaints about alleged pharming or phishing websites.
Spam – Complaints about domains allegedly sending spam to reporter.
Trademark or Copyright Infringement – Complaints about websites that are allegedly infringing on intellectual property rights.
Pharmaceuticals – Complaints about websites that are allegedly selling illegal pharmaceuticals.
Counterfeiting – Complaints about websites that are allegedly selling counterfeit goods.
Fraudulent, Deceptive Practices - Complaints about websites that are allegedly used for scams or other fraudulent activities.
Registrar Abuse Contact – Complaints about the registrar's abuse contact (either in WHOIS data or website) allegedly not being present or not being reachable.
Other – Complaints that do not fall into categories above.
N/A – Complaints that are in process and for which the detailed complaint type has not yet been determined, as well as tickets closed before 1st Notice.

Transfer:

Transfer – Complaints for normal inter-registrar transfers (Section I of Transfer Policy).
Unauthorized Transfer – Complaints for an allegedly unauthorized inter-registrar transfer (Section I of Transfer Policy).
Change of Registrant – Complaints for normal inter-registrant transfers (Changes in Registrant's information, Section II of Transfer Policy).
Unauthorized Change of Registrant – Complaints for an allegedly unauthorized inter-registrant transfer (Unauthorized Changes in RNH information, Section II of Transfer Policy).
Transfer Emergency Action Contact (TEAC) – Complaints about alleged failures in TEAC communication between registrars (Section I.A.4.6 of Transfer Policy).
N/A – Complaints that are in process and for which the detailed complaint type has not yet been determined, as well as tickets closed before 1st Notice.

WHOIS Inaccuracy:

Syntax – Complaints related to WHOIS format and allegedly missing data.
Operability – WHOIS Data Inaccuracy – Complaints that WHOIS information (e.g., phone number, postal address, and email address) is allegedly not contactable.
Operability – WHOIS Data Not Available – Complaints that some, but not all, of required WHOIS information is allegedly missing.
Identity – Complaints that a valid address is allegedly being misused by another party, such as complaints where WHOIS data belongs to the reporter, who did not register for the domain name and does not own it.
N/A – Complaints that are in process and for which the detailed complaint type has not yet been determined, as well as tickets closed before 1st Notice.

Additional Information on GAC Category 1 Safeguards

In the Beijing Communiqué, the Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) advised the ICANN Board that "[s]trings that are linked to regulated or professional sectors should operate in a way that is consistent with applicable laws." The GAC proposed specific safeguards that would apply to a broad category of strings related to "consumer protection, sensitive strings, and regulated markets."
GAC Communiqué – Beijing, People’s Republic of China

On 23 April 2013, ICANN initiated a public comment period to collect input on the "New gTLD Board Committee Consideration of GAC Safeguard Advice." The input received, as well as the applicant responses to the GAC Communiqués, served as inputs to the NGPC's consideration of GAC Category 1 Safeguard Advice.

On 5 February 2014, the New gTLD Program Committee adopted an implementation framework for GAC Category 1 Safeguard Advice.
GAC Category 1 Strings

The implementation framework classifies each Category 1 string as requiring one of three levels of safeguards:

Regulated Sectors/Open Entry Requirements in Multiple Jurisdictions
Highly Regulated Sectors/Closed Entry Requirements in Multiple Jurisdictions
Special Safeguards Required

The adoption of the implementation framework allowed applicants subject to GAC Category 1 Advice to proceed in the New gTLD Program once other eligibility criteria have been met. The implementation framework requires safeguards to be added to Specification 11 of the Registry Agreement as public interest commitments. For these applications, these safeguards are mandatory requirements. To view the specific safeguards and affected strings, review the implementation framework.

The complaints identified here are related to TLDs or second level domains in TLDs that are subject GAC Category 1.

Learn more about GAC Category 1 Safeguards.

ICANN Contractual Compliance Quarterly Metrics Explanation

Registrar and Registry Complaints by Region

Registrar and registry complaints by region include the following: domain volume, number of registrars and registries, and number of complaints. Metric calculations include percentage of complaints per domain volume, percentage of registrars with complaints per region, and percentage of registries with complaints per region. Domain counts shown are for the end of the month, three months prior to the report date.

Regional Turnaround Time (TAT)

Turnaround time for registries and registrars is measured in business days. The calculation is based on the contractual compliance informal and formal processes. The volume is the number of complaints in each cycle. The TAT is an average count of the number of business days it takes a registrar or registry operator to respond to any complaint in these process cycles. The average TAT is a calculation of the combined average of notices 1, 2, and 3.

Global Formal Notice Activity and Trends

The activity and trends represent the volume of each notice type sent during the quarter. The number of breach notice reasons is shown, as well as how many breaches were cured and how many breaches remain not cured as of quarter end. The chart represents the percentage for each breach reason. There is also a chart that shows the trended volume by notice type, notices by region, and notices by contract type.

Complaint and Notice Volumes by Quarter

The complaint volumes for the current and prior quarters are presented. The table includes the number of complaints received, the number of complaints closed before a 1st notice is sent to the contracted party and the total number of complaints closed during the quarter. Formal notices are also shown by notice type.

Satisfaction Survey

The satisfaction survey results present data for the current and previous quarter broken by the total survey participants, the reporters, and the contracted party. The satisfaction measurement response combines “very satisfied” and “somewhat satisfied.” Every closed ticket provides an opportunity to both the reporter and the contracted party to voice their satisfaction with the overall compliance service. Survey calculations are based on the volume of responses. The survey response rate is less than 3 percent of closed tickets.

Registrar Metrics

The registrar metrics are a quarter-over-quarter comparison showing the volume of received complaints by complaint type, the number of tickets closed before the 1st notice, and the number of tickets closed as an ICANN issue such as duplicate tickets or a notice sent in error. There is a chart showing turnaround time by process, as well as staff average turnaround time, with the data presented for the current and previous quarter. A series of charts shows the percentage of each closure reason for the top six complaint types.

Registry Metrics

The following are included in the registry metrics: the volume of received complaints by complaint type, the number of tickets closed before the 1st notice, and the volume of ICANN issues such as duplicate tickets or a notice sent in error. Two charts show the percentage by closure reason for the top four complaint types.

Contractual Compliance Metrics – Report Descriptions

1. Percentage of Registrars with Complaints by Region & Country or Territory

This report shows the percentage of unique (distinct) registrars that had complaints lodged against them in the last 13-month period. The percentage is calculated by dividing the total number of registrars in the given region, country, or territory by the number of unique registrars that had complaints. There are reports by ICANN Region and by the countries within each region.*

2. Percentage of Registries with Complaints by Region & Country or Territory

This report shows the percentage of unique registries that had complaints lodged against them in the last 13-month period. The percentage is calculated by dividing the total number of registries in the given region, country, or territory by the number of unique registries that had complaints. There are reports by ICANN Region and by the countries within each region.*

3. Complaints per Notification Cycle by Region

This report shows the distribution of complaint volume across the main ticket processing queues or notification cycles in the last 13-month period:

Volume Received: this is the number of new tickets created
Volume Closed Before 1st Notice: this is the number of tickets that were closed before any notices were sent out to registrars/registries
Volume 1st Notice Sent: this is the number of tickets that required a 1st Notice to be sent to registrars/registries
Volume 2nd Notice Sent: this is the number of tickets that required a 2nd Notice to be sent to registrars/registries
Volume 3rd Notice Sent: this is the number of tickets that required a 3rd Notice to be sent to registrars/registries
Volume Closed: this is the overall number of tickets that were closed

4. Informal Complaints by Region

These reports show various views of Informal (non-enforcement) complaints – there are two sets of reports – one for registrars and one for registries:

By month (Bar Chart) for the last 13-month period
By ICANN region (*) for the last 13-month period
By Complaint Type (Pie Chart) as a percentage of the whole set of complaint types for the last 13-month period
By Complaint Type (Table) for the last 13- month period

5. Formal Complaints by Type & Region

These reports show various views of formal (enforcement) complaints:

By enforcement type (Pie Chart) as a percentage of the whole set of enforcements for the last 13-month period
By enforcement type (Table and Bar Chart) for the last 13-month period
By ICANN region (*) for the last 13-month period

6. Formal Notices (Enforcement)

This report shows all enforcements and their reasons with activity in the last 13-month period. There is a section for registrars followed by a section for registries. The report is sorted by registrar or registry. Within the information for each specific registrar/registry, enforcement reasons are grouped by their status (Not cured, Cured, Suspended, and Terminated).

7. Complaint Count by TLD Round and Region

This report shows complaint volume for the last 13-month period by TLD Round & ICANN Region (*). The region is determined from the registrar associated with the ticket.

8. Domain Count by Region

This report shows the number of domains under management by TLD and ICANN region (*). The domain counts are for the end of the month, three months prior to the report date.

9. Domain Count Trends by gTLD

This report shows the number of domains carried by TLDs and is shown by TLD and month. The domain counts are for the end of the month, three months prior to the report date.

10. Domain Count by Registrar

This report shows the number of domains under management by registrars, as of the end of the month, three months prior to the report date. There are separate reports for those registrars operating under the 2013 RAA and 2009 RAA.

* ICANN region is determined by the country or territory associated with the registrar or registry against which the complaint is logged. The country or territory is determined by querying the master list of registrars and registries, which is updated each month. A master list is also maintained which links countries with their ICANN region. To view ICANN GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS Final Report by the Geographic Regions Review Working Group October 2015, go to: https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/geo-regions-wg-31oct15-en.pdf