Re: New netblock Geolocate wrong (Google)

["Patrick W. Gilmore" <patrick () ianai net>]

On Jan 18, 2010, at 8:38 PM, Steven Bellovin wrote:
> On Jan 18, 2010, at 8:22 PM, Warren Kumari wrote:
>
> > Something that I have often wondered is how folks would feel about publishing some sort of geo information in 
> > reverse DNS (something like LOC records, with whatever precision you like) -- this would allow the folks that geo 
> > stuff to automagically provide the best answer, and because you control the record, you can specify whatever 
> > resolution / precision you like. Based upon the sorry state of existing reverse, I'm suspecting that there is no 
> > point....
>
> I don't think that that works.  Apart from the problem that you allude to -- people not bothering to set it up in the 
> first place -- IP geolocation is often used for certain forms of access control and policy enforcement.  For example: 
> "Regular Season Local Live Blackout: All live, regular season games available via MLB.TV, MLB.com At Bat 2009 and 
> certain other MLB.com subscription services are subject to local blackouts. Such live games will be blacked out in 
> each applicable Club's home television territory, regardless of whether that Club is playing at home or away." 
> (http://www.mlb.com/mediacenter/).  EBay has apparently used IP geolocation (poorly) to control access to certain 
> auctions for items that are illegal in certain jurisdictions or that cannot be exported.

These are just ways of satisfying lawyers & courts that you at least tried to live up to your end of the bargain 
(licensing, laws, etc.).  Since many geo-location DBs work off SWIP records, which are obviously controlled by the 
user, and some even use in-addrs already for info, I don't see why it wouldn't work.

Also, this is not a silver-bullet kinda problem.  Every little bit helps.  If even a few % of people put LOC records 
into the DNS, it would help some people.  The danger is not of poor uptake, it's of kruft.  But that is a huge danger.  
Just no larger than SWIP or current in-addr.

-- 
TTFN,
patrick