The Benefits Of Owning Your IP Addresses

IP addresses play a vital role in connecting your business to the Internet. Most individuals rely on assigned IP addresses (the addresses that are assigned to them by their Internet service provider (ISP). However, this comes with many disadvantages.

Not owning your IP address means that the IP address that you're relying on can be taken away from you. Because you don't legally own your IP address, there is no way for you to fight for it once it's taken away from you.

NRS clarification. Even without a formal ownership right, a holder is not without remedies: the ways to challenge a withdrawal depend on the registry’s rules, the contracts and the law that apply, and NRS exists to make those rights stronger.

Here are NRS, we advocate for the right to own your IP address. In this post, we explain the advantages of having ownership rights to your IP address.

Continuity of Service

When you rely on IP addresses provided by your ISP or lease them from third parties, you face potential disruptions. This can happen when your provider changes or when your lease terminates. However, by purchasing your own IP addresses, you can maintain a consistent network configuration even when switching ISPs, ensuring uninterrupted service.

NRS clarification. Keeping the same addresses across providers depends on registration arrangements, upstream acceptance, routing and a managed transition; owning the addresses is the foundation, not the whole job. APNIC’s resource policy, §3.2.1 distinguishes delegation from global routability.

Increased Security

If your organization handles sensitive information, owning an IP address block offers enhanced security measures. For example, IP ownership enables you to select vendors specializing in protection against Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. Additionally, having a dedicated IP address block allows for secure remote access for your employees, which is particularly relevant in the era of remote work.

NRS clarification. Control of resources may broaden protection-provider choices where technical and contractual arrangements allow it. An address block is not itself a security control. Actual services, authentication, encryption and access controls provide protection.

Less Downtime

Using a shared IP address may occasionally result in brief downtime during server refreshes, potentially disrupting your online presence or important online processes. However, having a dedicated IP address eliminates this risk.

NRS clarification. A dedicated address does not eliminate server, network or application outages. Address sharing and server maintenance are different concerns. Reliability requires an appropriate service design and recovery plan.

Enhanced Functionality

A dedicated IP address offers you additional functionality, such as private SSL certificates for your secure e-commerce websites. Strictly speaking, you don't need your own IP address to get a private SSL certificate. However, owning your IP address for the purpose of SSL certification comes with advantages.

NRS clarification. TLS with SNI allows secure sites for different domain names to share an IP address. A dedicated address may meet a particular compatibility or configuration need; it is not a general requirement for a website certificate.

The security and reliability that comes with owning your IP address can make it smoother to acquire enhanced online functionalities for your business.

NRS clarification. Resource control can support long-term configuration and planning. It does not independently provide security or reliability for the whole service.

Remote Access and File Sharing

With a static IP address, you gain the ability to remotely access your PCs from anywhere in the world. This feature is particularly useful for telecommuting applications.

NRS clarification. A static address can provide a stable endpoint. Reachability, correctly configured services, authentication, encryption and access controls are still required. Static addressing is not proof of ownership.

Moreover, running an FTP server becomes possible. A file transfer protocol gives you the ability to transfer files between your computers quickly, enabling greater productivity and convenience.

NRS clarification. The FTP example dates the article: do not expose plain FTP to the Internet. Use authenticated, encrypted transfer such as SSH-based transfer. A static address is not the only way to share files.

At present, the world's asset of IP addresses and Autonomous System Numbers (ASN) is overseen by Regional Internet Registries (RIRs). For us to reach a point where we truly own our IP addresses, we need wide-ranging policy changes.

These new policies should give businesses, businesses like yours, the ability to claim ownership over the IP addresses that they buy. This way, you can achieve greater security and more control over the growth of your business.

NRS clarification. Conditional resource-transfer procedures already exist. NRS advocates stronger property-like protections and greater control for resource holders. Transfer approval and wider ownership reform are distinct matters.

Conclusion

Owning your IP address offers control, security, and greater stability for your online presence. While you are not able to claim ownership of your IP address as of now, this possibility can definitely happen. It requires a massive overhaul of current IP address policies and a change in how RIRs do things. Join NRS in the advocacy for a better Internet for everyone.

NRS clarification. Ownership of addresses is not yet a settled legal conclusion in every jurisdiction; NRS’s reform position is a demand for stronger, enforceable rights. Operational control, dedicated use, provider independence and legal ownership remain separate questions.