To strengthen internet services: ANTIC drills internet ecosystem actors on Domain Names Systems.

It was held on the sidelines of the fourth edition of National Forum on DNS organised by ANTIC.

It was held under the theme: “Strengthening the capacity of human resources to guarantee access to quality Internet in Cameroon”.

The training, organisers said, was carried out in partnership with The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, ICANN. ICAAN is a global multi-stakeholder group and nonprofit organisation responsible for coordinating the maintenance and procedures of several databases related to the namespaces and numerical spaces of the Internet, ensuring the Internet’s stable and secure operation.

The Director General of ANTIC, Prof Ebot Ebot Enaw, while opening the workshop, expressed thanks to Mohamed Yazid Akanho, the expert designated by ICANN as lead trainer of the workshop.

Prof Ebot Ebot also thanked the ICAAN expert his interest, “in enhancing our understanding and security of the DNS in Cameroon”.

The ANTIC boss said the training follows results of an investigation the institution under his control did on internet content accessibility Cameroon. 

He further disclosed that a technical team from ANTIC was able to establish that internet users had difficulties accessing certain services online. 

Prof Ebot Ebot added that the situation was caused by the disfunctioning of DNS which sprung from poor configuration and deployment.

Based on the experience, he said it was necessary to reinforce the capacity of all key actors in the internet ecosystem. 

He said above the essential functions that DNS plays in internet life, it helps to stabilize internet connection as such any cyber-attacks on the DNS can greatly hinder access to daily Internet users.

Examples of how fault slows business

The ANTIC boss used the example of a small Cameroonian businessman attempting to launch a website to sell its products online but finds it difficult to render the website accessible to potential users due to poor DNS configuration.

This, he said, does not only hamper the commercial prospects of the business, but equally deprives consumers of easy access to the local products.

Another practical case he added, could be that of students preparing for a crucial exam but unable to access online educational resources due to a DNS malfunction. "This, he stated, could severely compromise their academic pursuits.

These examples, he went on, “explicitly illustrate the crucial role which a reliable and secure DNS infrastructure plays to support our emerging digital economy and ensure equitable access to the opportunities offered by the Internet”.

The system, he said, is a sort of digital library which allows, for the translation from Internet protocol, IP, address to Domain Names. Domains Names in computer usage, Prof Ebot Ebot stated, are more human friendly and easy to remember than IP addresses. 

Since DNS is responsible for enabling all internet activity, experts at the training suggested the need to keep an eye on DNS requests and the IP addresses to help keep network secure.

Enter ICAAN expert 

To strengthen the internet system, the ICANN expert, Mohamed Yazid, said he brought three things to fix the Cameroonian DNS system. The first among them, he said is the sharing of best operational practices.

“That is what the international technical community has agreed to follow. Secondly, we have helped them understand the difference between just running services and running optimised services and also the available opportunities,” Yazid said. 

Going by the resource person, “by following the best practices, it also helps them grow beyond technical” levels.

The resource person further detailed that, “we are here looking at the business opportunities they could get when they abide to best practices”.

Participants salute training

Stakeholders who took part at the workshop got hands-on knowledge on the deployment and configuration of internet. Participants said thanks to the training, they now have a better mastery of the functionality of the internet and ameliorate DNS

One of the participants, Claude Ambomo, told reporters that he now has knowledge on tackling issues of internet connections in Cameroon.

“We have analyzed several sub online domains controlled by ANTIC and learned things from ICANN that we didn’t previously understand. We are leaving with solutions to problems on site unavailability given to us by ICANN and we shall be implementing that as from today,” Ambomo said.

This story first published in The Guardian Post issue No3127 of Friday May 31, 2024