The Communications, Space, and Technology Commission (“CST”) held a training program on Domain Name System (“DNS”) and Domain Name System Security Extensions (“DNSSEC”), with the aim of contributing to building capabilities and specialized skills in the field of domain names, enhancing relevant aspects of security and reliability, and raising their adoption ratio in the Kingdom in accordance with the most prominent international specifications and standards, in corporation with the Digital Government Authority (“DGA”) and Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (“ICANN”).
This program is part of a series of specialized programs held by CST, which have benefited +300 participants from governmental and academic agencies and companies specialized in providing internet services, with the aim of raising awareness in the field of domain names in particular, as the Kingdom is one of the first countries in the MENA region which activated DNSSEC in the field of domain names and made it available to users. The Kingdom also achieved first place globally in terms of internet traffic ratio that serves DNSSEC.
This year's program version comes with the participation of +40 trainees from government agencies employees and accredited registrars, where they received training that lasted for five days on DNS basics and related technologies. They also learned about the most prominent features of DNSSEC, how it contributes to enhancing its protection, and how to activate DNSSEC and manage its related operations along with practical applications, as DNSSEC provides a set of technical specifications that aim to secure and protect the information it provides and contribute to reducing cyberattacks.
