.su

.su
Introduced	19 September 1990
TLD type	Country code top-level domain
Status	Active
Registry	Russian Institute for Public Networks (РосНИИРОС)
Sponsor	Russian Institute for Public Networks (РосНИИРОС)
Intended use	Entities connected with the Soviet Union
Actual use	Mostly used by entities connected with post-Soviet states
Registered domains	105,884 (7 December 2021)
Registration restrictions	Passport required
Structure	Registrations are permitted directly at the second level
Documents	Documents
Dispute policies	None
DNSSEC	yes
Registry website	ripn.su

.su is an Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) that was designated for the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) on 19 September 1990.^[2] Even though the Soviet Union itself was dissolved 15 months later, the .su top-level domain remains in use to the present day. It is administered by the Russian Institute for Public Networks (RIPN, or RosNIIROS in Russian transcription).^[3]

The .su ccTLD is known for usage by cybercriminals.^[4]^[5]^[6]

History

After 1989 a set of new internet domains was created in Europe, including .pl (Poland), .cs (Czechoslovakia), .yu (Yugoslavia) and .dd (East Germany). Among them, there was also a domain for the USSR – .su.^[7] Initially, before two-letter ccTLDs became standard, the Soviet Union was to receive a .ussr domain. The .su domain was proposed by the 19-year-old Finnish student Petri Ojala.^[8] On 26 December 1991 the country was dissolved and its constituent republics gained independence, which should have caused the domain to begin a phase-out process, as happened with those of East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia. Until 1994^[7] there was no assigned top-level domain name for Russia. For this reason the country continued to use the Soviet domain. In 1994 the .ru domain was created, which was supposed to eventually replace the .su domain^[7] (domains for the republics other than Russia were created at different times in the mid-nineties). The domain was supposed to be withdrawn by ICANN, but it was kept at the request of the Russian government and Internet users.^[7]

In 2001, the managers of the domain stated that they would commence accepting new .su registrations, but it is unclear whether this action was compatible with ICANN policies.^[9] ICANN has expressed intentions to terminate the .su domain and IANA states that the domain is being phased out,^[3]^[10] but lobbyists stated in September 2007 that they had started negotiations with ICANN on retaining the domain.^[10]^[9] In the first quarter of 2008, .su registrations increased by 45%.^[9]

Usage

The domain was intended to be used by Soviet institutions and companies operating in the USSR. The dissolution of the Soviet Union meant that the new TLD was superseded by the new country TLDs of the former Soviet republics. Despite this, .su is still in use. Most of the .su domains are registered in Russia and the United States.^[11] According to the RU-CENTER data from May 2010, there were over 93,500 registered domains with the .su TLD (there are over 2.8 million .ru domains).^[12] Some organizations with roots in the former Soviet Union also still use this TLD.^[6] The pro-Russian Ukrainian separatist group Donetsk People's Republic have also registered their domain with the TLD.^[13] The .su domain also hosts white supremacist websites that have been deplatformed elsewhere, formerly including The Daily Stormer.^[14]

The domain has been reported to host many cybercrime activities^[15]^[5]^[4] due to the relaxed and outdated terms of use, along with staying out of focus (2% usage comparing to the primary .ru zone).^[4]^[16] Rules for timely suspension of malicious domains^[16] have been in place since 2013 in response to the issue.^[17]