News archive

Estonian Internet Foundation content management principles on the Estonian Internet

The Estonian internet stands out for its security, but despite this, malicious content on .ee websites could be found. Due to EIF's position as the organizer and administrator of .ee domain registrations, we have the technical ability to stop the display of malicious web page content and implement notations concerning prohibition on .ee domains. Thus, we can limit the number of violations on the Internet.

Malicious activities on the Internet can be divided into two categories: web page content and technical violations. Activities related to the content of the page are, for example, consumer fraud, illegal sale of goods, violation of intellectual property and distribution of other content that is contrary to the law of the Republic of Estonia or the European Union. Violations of a technical nature usually involve malware infection, spamming or phishing.

EIF can use various measures to limit such activities based on the official notification made by the competent authority. Therefore, when an individual discovers a violation, they must contact the competent authority to determine the content, scope, and impact of the violation. The authorities for the violations are the Consumer Protection and Technical Supervision Board (TTJA), the Police and Border Guard Board, the Money Laundering Data Bureau, CERT-EE, the Defense Police Board, the Court, the Prosecutor's Office and accredited .ee registrars.  For example, it is worth contacting the TTJA when there is a reason to suspect consumer fraud. Based on the Consumer Protection Act, the office has the right to oblige EIF to block access to the .ee domain or delete its registration. However, if the violation is of a technical nature, CERT-EE should be contacted.

In the event that EIF has been notified by a competent authority, we will assess the scope and impact of the violations and make a considered decision on what restrictions we will apply to the domain name. When making a decision, we consider each case separately and base the suspension of the domain name on the proportionality of the violation and its consequences. It must be emphasized that the suspension or deletion of the domain is the last option to remove the violation from the Internet. This means that we check whether the person behind the domain name has previously exhausted all possibilities to eliminate the violation, for example by contacting the registrant, the web service or the registrar.

For example, in a situation where one ad with disturbing content has been published on a popular advertising portal, it is not proportionally correct to stop the domain name registration and with it the entire website. You should first contact the page administrator or web server service provider and request the removal of a specific ad. If this does not work and the infringement is judged to be serious enough, only as a last resort will the content be removed by suspending or deleting the domain name registration.

EIF has also signed cooperation agreements with the Estonian Police and Border Guard Board and CERT-EE, who have the right to access the data related to the .ee domain name, as a preventive measure. By doing this, we can prevent malicious activity and quickly identify the data of the domain registrant. EIF can be approached with suspicion of a possible violation – we will provide explanations or direct you to the right place if necessary. In conclusion, if you discover or suspect a potential violation, read more about managing internet content on our website or let us know about it by emailing info@internet.ee.