.su

Internet country-code top level domain for the Soviet Union March 2025 .su DotSU domain logo.svg 19 September 1990 Country code top-level domain Active Russian Institute for Public Networks (РосНИИРОС) Russian Institute for Public Networks (РосНИИРОС) Entities connected with the Soviet Union Entities connected with post-Soviet states Passport required 111,695 3 February 2025 Общее число доменов Домены России https://statdom.ru/tld/su/report/domainscount/ 21 July 2020 statdom.ru Registrations are permitted directly at the second level Documents None https://ripn.su/en/ yes 150px .su is an Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) that was designated for the Soviet Union on 19 September 1990.https://www.iana.org/domains/root/db/su.html IANA — .su Domain Delegation Data iana.org 12 September 2019 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). 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.http://rosyjski.bukwa.pl/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=492&Itemid=78 Domena internetowa SU Marcin Kryska pl 11 June 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20140102193837/http://rosyjski.bukwa.pl/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=492&Itemid=78 2 January 2014 dead 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.http://netoscope.narod.ru/news/2000/09/19/312.html ru:Юбилей Рунета: 10 лет назад финн Петри Ойала зарегистрировал домен .su ru 12 January 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20140102191207/http://netoscope.narod.ru/news/2000/09/19/312.html 2 January 2014 dead 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 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 (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. 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.Back in the USSR: Soviet Internet domain name resists death, Mansur Mirovalev, writing for Associated Press, 18 April 2008 In September 2007, lobbyists stated that they had started negotiations with ICANN on retaining the domain.https://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSL1986480720070919 USSR still alive on Internet and won't go quietly 5 December 2007 Kilner James 19 September 2007 Reuters https://web.archive.org/web/20071213152504/https://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSL1986480720070919 13 December 2007 In March 2025, ICANN reportedly notifiedhttps://domainnamewire.com/2025/03/11/icann-moves-to-retire-soviet-era-su-country-domain-name/ ICANN moves to retire Soviet-era .SU country domain name 20 March 2025 Allemann Andrew 11 March 2025 Domain Name Wire the operator of the domain, the Russian Institute for Development of Public Networks (ROSNIIROS),.su Domain Delegation Data IANA of a planned phase-out of the domain by 2030. As of May 2026, the .su ccTLD contained over 112,000 domains.https://statdom.ru/tld/su/report/summary/ Домены России 20 March 2025 Domain Name Wire From September 2026, Rucenter added a new mandatory identity registration requirement in response to new Russian regulation (Federal Law No. 569-FZ) signed late 2025. This affects all of Rucenter's managed domains including .ru, .su, and .рф, requiring all existing and new registrations to submit identity information to the Gosuslugi/ESIA portal, the Unified Identification and Authentication System. This verification system requires cooperation with the registrar, and many registrars had not updated their systems to permit verification for registrants, meaning that on September 1 of 2026 a large amount of .su domains will have renewals fail and the total number of domains is likely to drop.Mandatory Identification of Registrants via Gosuslugi (Unified Identification and Authentication System) https://www.nic.ru/en/info/esia-id/ Rucenter 25 June 2026Register.su https://register.su register.su 25 June 2026 Usage The domain was intended to be used by Soviet institutions and companies operating in the USSR. The dissolution of the Soviet Union a mere 15 months after the establishment of .su 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.http://gospodarka.gazeta.pl/gospodarka/1,33181,4509424.html Domena .su wciąż używana, chociaż ZSRR już nie ma 21 September 2007 pl 12 January 2010 According to data from May 2025, there were over 111,500 registered domains with the .su TLD (there are over 5.895 million .ru domains).https://tendence.ru/articles/kak-sozdat-korporativnuyu-elektronnuyu-pochtu-dlya-biznesa-so-svoim-domenom#domain Домены — статистика регистраций 2025-05-03 Some organizations with roots in the former Soviet Union also still use this TLD.https://www.gizmodo.com/tons-of-hackers-are-hanging-out-in-old-soviet-cyberspac-510829003 Gizmodo Tons of Hackers are Hanging out in old Soviet Cyberspace June 2013 The pro-Russian Ukrainian separatist Donetsk People's Republic have also registered their domain with the TLD.Donetsk People's Republic 'Government' Portal https://dnronline.su/ 30 December 2019 18 April 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20220418084609/https://dnronline.su/ dead The .su domain, along with .ru briefly hosted white supremacist websites that had been deplatformed elsewhere, including The Daily Stormer.Ryan Fergus Why Are Moscow and Beijing Happy to Host the U.S. Far-Right Online? https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/22/russia-beijing-web-host-far-right-parler-daily-stormer/ 16 June 2021 Foreign Policy en-US Following complaints from Russia's internet regulator Roskomnadzor however, such websites have been removed from both TLDs.Russia boots white supremacist website from its internet: report https://thehill.com/policy/technology/346932-russia-boots-white-supremacist-website-from-its-internet-report 29 November 2025 17 Aug 2017Russian Web Host Suspends Daily Stormer After Government Inquiry https://www.rferl.org/a/u-s-neo-nazi-website-russian-domain-daily-stormer/28680409.html 29 November 2025 16 Aug 2017 The domain also hosted many cybercrime activitiesMoscow Associated Press in 2013-05-31 Hack in the USSR: cybercriminals find haven in .su domain space http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/may/31/ussr-cybercriminals-su-domain-space 2022-08-21 the Guardian enPatel Neel V. The Bizarre Afterlife of .su, the Domain Name and Last Bastion of the USSR https://www.inverse.com/article/8672-the-bizarre-afterlife-of-su-the-domain-name-and-last-bastion-of-the-ussr 2022-08-21 Inverse December 2015 en the .su domain has attracted a lot of attention from cybercriminals looking for a safe haven to conduct operations until 2013 due to the relaxed and outdated terms of use, along with staying out of focus (2% usage comparing to the primary .ru zone).Old Soviet Union domain name attracts cybercriminal interest https://www.foxnews.com/tech/old-soviet-union-domain-name-attracts-cybercriminal-interest/ 31 August 2015 31 May 2013Group-IB and Foundation for Internet Development sign an agreement to combat cyber threats in the .SU domain zone http://www.group-ib.com/index.php/7-novosti/831-group-ib-and-foundation-for-internet-development-sign-an-agreement-to-combat-cyber-threats-in-the-su-domain-zone 26 November 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20170113132104/http://www.group-ib.com/index.php/7-novosti/831-group-ib-and-foundation-for-internet-development-sign-an-agreement-to-combat-cyber-threats-in-the-su-domain-zone 13 January 2017 dead Rules for timely suspension of malicious domains have been in place since 2013 in response to the issue.https://info.nic.ru/node/4491 Генеральная уборка в домене SU info.info.nic.ru See also Soviet Union Internet .рф .ru Runet Technical Center of Internet Nostalgia for the Soviet Union References External links Statistics of registrations under the .su domain RIPN press release regarding future of .su domain https://web.archive.org/web/20200124133556/http://www.ripn.net/press/en/2008/itar-tass-SU-sum.html 24 January 2020 Category:Computing in the Soviet Union Category:Country code top-level domains Category:Internet in Russia Category:1990 establishments in the Soviet Union Category:Communications in the Soviet Union Category:Internet properties established in 1990 sv:Toppdomän#S