In cybersecurity, our first focus is often on the most visible threats: attacks, fraud, disruptions, data theft, and other incidents. But there is another, less obvious yet equally important dimension: the security of the foundations on which the Internet operates every day.
In an increasingly interconnected environment, digital trust cannot be based on assumptions alone. It requires verification, coordination, and the ability to respond. This is where Internet security takes on a strategic dimension.
The Internet was designed for a different context, one with more limited functionality, a much smaller network, and far fewer participating entities and individuals. It was based primarily on relationships of trust among a limited number of actors. Over time, however, the Internet has come to play a central role in society, the economy, and services, becoming an integral part of daily life. This change in scale has also changed security requirements. Trust alone is no longer enough; we must also verify, measure, and coordinate effectively.
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As a Regional Internet Registry, our contribution is to strengthen the operational foundations of the Internet in Latin America and the Caribbean. This means, first and foremost, ensuring that information about the organizations managing network resources is accurate and up to date so the appropriate operators can be contacted when necessary. For example, when an incident occurs, having the right information allows for faster communication, facilitates coordination, and reduces the margin of error in the response.
It also means promoting and supporting the adoption of open standards that strengthen the security of Internet operations. In routing, for example, tools like RPKI allow us to move from a model based on implicit trust to one based on verification. We are seeing tangible progress in this area: by 2025, the percentage of routes validated through RPKI in the LACNIC service region reached 60% for IPv4 and 60.87% for IPv6. In addition, through the FORT project, an initiative developed jointly by NIC Mexico and LACNIC to promote the deployment of RPKI using open-source tools, we are helping to strengthen this process.
Something similar is happening with the DNS, a central component of how the Internet works. Here too, less visible but essential work is being carried out to maintain stability, integrity, and trust. At LACNIC, we contribute to these efforts through technical services such as providing reverse DNS for the region and promoting practices that strengthen regional network operations, particularly by encouraging the deployment of DNSSEC.
As a Regional Internet Registry, our contribution is to strengthen the operational foundations of the Internet in Latin America and the Caribbean. This means, first and foremost, ensuring that information about the organizations managing network resources is accurate and up to date so the appropriate operators can be contacted when necessary. For example, when an incident occurs, having the right information allows for faster communication, facilitates coordination, and reduces the margin of error in the response.
It also means promoting and supporting the adoption of open standards that strengthen the security of Internet operations. In routing, for example, tools like RPKI allow us to move from a model based on implicit trust to one based on verification. We are seeing tangible progress in this area: by 2025, the percentage of routes validated through RPKI in the LACNIC service region reached 60% for IPv4 and 60.87% for IPv6. In addition, through the FORT project, an initiative developed jointly by NIC Mexico and LACNIC to promote the deployment of RPKI using open-source tools, we are helping to strengthen this process.
Something similar is happening with the DNS, a central component of how the Internet works. Here too, less visible but essential work is being carried out to maintain stability, integrity, and trust. At LACNIC, we contribute to these efforts through technical services such as providing reverse DNS for the region and promoting practices that strengthen regional network operations, particularly by encouraging the deployment of DNSSEC.
However, Internet security depends on more than just technology. It also depends on cooperation. Threats know no borders, which is why coordination among operators, response teams, the technical community, and authorities is a central part of resilience. When trust networks, clear communication channels, accurate information, and installed capacity are in place, responses can be faster, more effective, and have less impact on third parties.
In this context, strengthening spaces for coordination and response is equally important. Through our work with CSIRTs across the region and cooperation with law enforcement agencies (LEAs) in relevant areas, we seek to create capabilities, facilitate coordination, and contribute to more effective responses to security incidents.
That is why, when discussing digital security, it is important to broaden our perspective. It is not only about protecting platforms, applications, or end users. It is also about safeguarding the elements that make everything else possible.
This is a principle that we at LACNIC seek to reinforce: digital trust is also built on the foundations of the Internet. The more robust, verifiable, and coordinated those foundations are, the more secure the Internet will be for the entire region.
