, ROOM BETA
Internet blocking is part of the operational reality of running an ISP in Italy.
What looks like a simple requirement becomes considerably more complex when it reaches the network. Blocking orders come from several authorities, for different purposes and through different procedures, while courts can impose additional restrictions.
There is no single system behind them. Yet an ISP has to identify what must be blocked, keep the information up to date and translate it into reliable network behaviour.
This talk looks at how we deal with this at Airbeam, where we have built a largely automated DNS-based approach to handle these obligations. I will also share some real cases that show what can happen when regulatory requirements meet day-to-day network operations.
Last year at BalticNOG, I presented Piracy Shield, Italy's anti-piracy blocking platform.
This year, I want to continue that story.
Piracy Shield was only the tip of the iceberg.
Italian ISPs also receive blocking requirements from ADM, separately for gambling and tobacco, AGCOM, CONSOB, IVASS and CNCPO. On top of these administrative mechanisms, blocking can also result from court orders.
Each has developed in its own way. Some provide lists, others issue individual orders; publication and notification methods differ, as do update procedures and technical expectations. There is no common interface designed for the operators that ultimately have to implement them.
I will map this rather peculiar ecosystem and show how Airbeam brings much of it together at DNS level, from collecting and normalizing the sources to applying and removing restrictions.
There will also be some real examples. A few of them are good illustrations of how not to design an operational process involving hundreds of network operators.
The Italian case will then provide the starting point for a discussion with the BalticNOG community: what happens in other countries, and can we do this better?
Livio is an electronic and computer engineer with nearly two decades of experience in the telecommunications sector. Since 2010, he has led Airbeam, a regional Italian operator with a strong international engagement. He serves as President of PeeringDB and sits on the board of AIIP (the Italian Association of Internet Providers), where he actively contributes to regulatory work at both the Italian and European levels, representing the interests of independent network operators in their dialogue with public authorities.
He is also active in the public and political sphere as National Head of the Department for Technological Innovation, Networks, and Artificial Intelligence within the Italian civic movement Rivoluzione della Bellezza, where he promotes digital and infrastructure-related policies through cross-sector collaboration.
Livio works closely with ISPs, IXPs, and community-driven infrastructure initiatives, combining network engineering with experience in Internet governance and regulation. He is a regular speaker at industry events such as Peering Forums and regional NOGs, where he focuses on optical systems, Internet interconnection, network-level regulatory compliance, Internet blocking and its enforcement mechanisms, and the evolving landscape of WISPs and the Italian telecommunications sector.