Rod Rasmussen
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Rod Rasmussen is a cybersecurity expert and longtime participant in Internet security and DNS policy. He is a member of ICANN's Security and Stability Advisory Committee (SSAC), which he chaired from 2018 through 2023. In October 2023, the ICANN Board reappointed Rasmussen to the SSAC for a three-year term running from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2026.[1][2]
Rasmussen co-founded the cybersecurity company Internet Identity (IID) and served as its President and Chief Technology Officer. IID specialized in detecting and mitigating Internet security threats, including phishing and abuse of the domain name system. The company was acquired by Infoblox in 2016, and Rasmussen retired from full-time cybersecurity executive work in early 2017. He subsequently established R2 Cyber, through which he provides occasional consulting and expert-witness services.[1]
ICANN and DNS Security[edit | edit source]
Rasmussen has been involved with the SSAC for many years, with a particular focus on DNS abuse and other security issues affecting Internet naming infrastructure. He became SSAC Chair in January 2018 and served two consecutive three-year terms, ending on December 31, 2023. Ram Mohan succeeded him as chair in January 2024, while Rasmussen remained a committee member.[1][2]
In February 2013, Rasmussen was selected to serve on ICANN's Expert Working Group on gTLD Directory Services (EWG). The group was established to reconsider the purpose of collecting and maintaining gTLD registration data and to develop a model for the provision of registration directory services, including issues of data accuracy, access and privacy.[3] The EWG issued its final report in June 2014, proposing a next-generation model for gTLD registration directory services.[4]
Cybersecurity Work[edit | edit source]
Rasmussen has held leadership and advisory roles in several organizations concerned with cybercrime and Internet abuse. He serves on the board of the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) and is an Expert Advisor to the Messaging, Malware and Mobile Anti-Abuse Working Group (M3AAWG). He has also participated in the Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (FIRST) and regularly participated in DNS-OARC activities.[1][5]
Rasmussen's current ICANN disclosure of interest also identifies him as a board member and investor in CleanDNS, a company providing services related to the mitigation of DNS abuse.[1]
Education[edit | edit source]
Rasmussen earned an MBA from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley. He holds bachelor's degrees in Computer Science and Economics from the University of Rochester. Earlier in his career, he worked for the U.S. Congressional Budget Office and for companies in the computer communications and networking sectors.[1]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 ICANN: SSAC Members Retrieved August 11, 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 ICANN Board: Approved Resolutions, 26 October 2023 Retrieved August 11, 2026.
- ↑ Expert Working Group on gTLD Directory Services Members Selected ICANN. Retrieved August 11, 2026.
- ↑ Final Report from the Expert Working Group on gTLD Directory Services ICANN. June 6, 2014. Retrieved August 11, 2026.
- ↑ M3AAWG Expert Advisors Retrieved August 11, 2026.