Securing the DNS: The Foundation of a High-Quality Internet in Cameroon

Key players in Cameroon's Internet ecosystem open discussions on the security, stability and sovereignty of the country's Internet infrastructure.

The discussions are taking place in Yaoundé during the sixth edition of the National Domain Name System (DNS) Forum organised by the National Agency for Information and Communication Technologies (ANTIC). The forum brings together telecommunications operators, Internet service providers, domain name registrars and hosting service providers under the theme: « DNS Security and Stability: The Foundation of a High-Quality Internet in Cameroon ».

Strengthening DNS Security

At the centre of the discussions is the need to strengthen the security of the Domain Name System, a critical component that translates website names into IP addresses. Weaknesses in this system can expose Internet users to cyberattacks, including attempts to redirect them to fake or malicious websites.

To address these risks, stakeholders are seeking to accelerate the deployment of DNSSEC, a protocol designed to verify the authenticity of DNS information. Cameroon successfully deployed DNSSEC in April 2025, marking a significant step toward securing its infrastructure.

This objective comes after the sector failed to attain the 98% target set during the previous forum held in Douala in 2025. Performance levels vary considerably among service providers:

Beyond cybersecurity concerns, the forum is also examining challenges affecting access to locally hosted digital content. ANTIC has observed that Internet users do not always enjoy the same level of access to websites and services hosted under the national ".cm" domain, depending on the network provider they use.

The Urgent Move to IPv6

Opening the forum, the Director General of ANTIC, Prof. Ebot Ebot Enaw, underscored a critical challenge: the urgent need for Cameroon to fully transition from Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) to IPv6.

He noted that the future of Cameroon's digital economy depends heavily on the country's ability to embrace technologies capable of supporting exponential growth in connected devices. He explained that IPv4, which currently powers much of the infrastructure, was designed at a time when connected devices were relatively limited. He also pointed out that IPv4 poses a significant hurdle for digital investigations; because of address scarcity, providers share public IP addresses among multiple users, obscuring individual digital footprints.

With the rapid emergence of the Internet of Things, the pool of available IPv4 addresses has become increasingly insufficient to meet growing local demand. This reality, Prof. Enaw added, makes the transition to IPv6 not only necessary but urgent. IPv6 provides a virtually unlimited address space, enabling billions of devices to connect directly and securely to the Internet.