A majority of the nation’s Internet users would not be affected by non-compliance testing on Domain Name System (DNS) Flag Day tomorrow, the National Communications Commission (NCC) said yesterday, adding that people need not worry over the possible consequences of the test.
DNS translates domain names to the numerical Internet protocol addresses needed for locating and identifying computer services and devices.
As DNS is slow, inefficient and susceptible to denial-of-service attacks, several software and service providers have announced that they would test their platforms on or around Friday to see if there are still Web sites that do not comply with the Extension Mechanisms for DNS (EDNS), a new DNS standard.
Google, Facebook, IBM/Quad9, Cloudflare, Cisco’s OpenDNS and other public domain name system operators are to participate in DNS Flag Day, the commission said.
The test would only affect non-compliant software, according to the DNS Flag Day Web site.
Some Internet users have expressed concerns that they would not be able to access certain Web sites or would experience slow connections on DNS Flag Day.
People accessing the Internet on their mobile phones would not have any problems, as they cannot change the DNS settings on mobile communication devices, NCC Frequency and Resources Department Deputy Director Niu Hsin-ren (牛信仁) said.
However, users could experience slower connections if they try to access Web sites whose builders have not upgraded to the EDNS, as Google and other Internet search platforms have difficulty interfacing with these Web sites, he said.
Although the majority of the nation’s Web sites have upgraded to EDNS, some advanced users might encounter problems, as they change their DNS settings themselves, Nieu said.
The problem can be solved by changing to Internet protocol (IP) addresses provided by Internet service providers for their respective public DNS, or the IP address for “Quad 1,” a free DNS developed by Taiwan Network information Center, he added.
The IP address for Quad 1 is 101.101.101.101; the address for Google’s DNS server is 8.8.8.8; for IBM/Quad 9 it is 9.9.9.9; for Cloudflare 1.1.1.1; and the IP address for Cisco’s OpenDNS is 208.67.222.222, the commission said.
Eight to 9 percent of Internet traffic is directed at Web sites that have not upgraded to EDNS, Nieu said, citing NCC data.
In related news, the commission is considering gradually raising the coverage rate of broadband Internet service to 100 percent at 84 remote townships nationwide, saying that it would start using available funding to install broadband service facilities in junior and primary schools, government-funded health service centers, libraries and other public places in the nation’s remote areas.
Although the nation’s broadband service penetration rate has reached an average of 97 percent, with Internet speeds reaching 12 megabits per second (Mpbs), there is still a wide digital gap between users in urban and remote areas, NCC spokesman Wong Po-tsung (翁柏宗) said.
The coverage rate for broadband service transmitting at 100Mbps in urban areas is 100 percent, but for the same service in remote areas it is 64 percent, he added.
Telecoms are obligated to transfer a percentage of their annual profits to the Telecommunication Universal Service Fund (電信普及服務基金), which is about NT$620 million (US$20.15 million) per year, Wong said, adding that the fund is used to build telecom infrastructure in economically disadvantaged areas.
The Executive Yuan last year also allocated a three-year budget of NT$800 million through the Forward-Looking Infrastructure Development Program to raise the coverage rate in remote areas to 100 percent.
The commission needs to consider whether the telecoms can sustain their operations if they quickly raise the coverage rate from 64 to 100 percent, given that only 6.4 percent of the population in remote areas subscribes to the 100Mbps service, Wong said.
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