2025 Activity Report
.de – for a responsible internet
2025 – A Year of Collaborative Innovation
For DENIC, 2025 was a year of setting important new directions. The focus was on implementing the NIS 2 Directive. Together with the members of our cooperative, we developed and implemented practical solutions.
The new composition of the Executive Board and Supervisory Board has further solidified the development of our cooperative, and Barbara Stolz, as the new Executive Board member, will bring valuable new ideas to the table.
A special highlight of the year was the successful Domain pulse in Dresden, Germany — a valuable platform for exchange and discussion within the Internet community.
We have further strengthened our international network. Engagement with organizations such as the eco association, ICANN, and CENTR, as well as other international partners, is essential for identifying regulatory and technical developments at an early stage, coordinating our positions, and effectively representing our members’ interests in the international arena.
2025 has shown how much we can achieve together through innovation, close collaboration, and a clear vision of the challenges ahead — true to our motto “.de – for a responsible internet.”
.de – a stable basis
Our Highlights
Ready for NIS 2
Our automated registration system is compliant with the requirements of the NIS 2 Directive. This applies in particular to the data to be provided during domain registration and the verification of that data. The focus was on ensuring that the registration process remained as user-friendly as possible for new registrants. And our domain query / whois is designed to display specific registration details, such as the registration details of legal persons and the domain’s registration date.
Crisis-proof & certified
Conducted by an external firm, the crisis management team had to face a realistic exercise. The conclusion: when things get serious, we are well prepared; we were also given some specific recommendations to take on board. Thanks to thorough preparation, from the gap analysis to internal audits, the transition audit to ISO/IEC 27001:2022 at DENIC eG and our subsidiary DENIC Services GmbH & Co. KG went perfectly. Crises cannot always be prevented; what is important is to tackle them in a well-organised manner.
Straight to the point of contact
New section for inquiries on our website: We direct visitors straight to the right point of contact. Inquiries can be easily submitted to the appropriate contact person. Another new feature is our partnership with the independent eco-complaints office. An interface forwards inquiries directly, and they can be reliably processed by the complaints office.
Domain pulse Dresden
A particular highlight was the successful Domain Pulse event in Dresden, which impressively demonstrated the innovative strength of the domain community. Despite challenging market conditions, .de remains a stable and trustworthy top level domain. We also remain committed to an open, free, global, and secure internet at both the national and international levels.
Our motto “.de – for a responsible internet” continues to serve as both our guiding principle and our driving force.
Involvement in Internet Governance
From Berlin to Brussels to New York
At the national level, DENIC eG has been serving as the secretariat for the IGF-D since late 2022, thereby strengthening the multistakeholder dialogue on internet governance and digital policy issues in Germany. In addition, DENIC played an active role last year in supporting the legislative process for the implementation of the NIS2 Directive.
At the European level, DENIC, in collaboration with CENTR, pursued numerous legislative initiatives, with a particular focus on participating in the e-evidence process as part of a relevant expert group.
Internationally, the United Nations’ WSIS+20 process shaped discussions on Internet governance. The adoption of the WSIS+20 resolution in New York marked a major milestone. As part of the technical community, DENIC actively participated in the consultations through the “A Technical Community Coalition for Multistakeholderism.”
“Internet governance is about establishing rules for the Internet, achieving technical outcomes, and the process of getting there. Multistakeholder dialogue plays a defining and crucial role in this context. As a strong voice for the technical community, DENIC is present and active at the national, European, and global levels.”
Peter Koch
Senior Policy Advisor at DENIC
Online Safety
In 2025, DENIC’s Technical Department implemented measures to further improve the stability, security, and performance of the infrastructure. A newly introduced “Security Information and Event Management” (SIEM) system centrally records and analyzes security-related events, thereby increasing transparency and responsiveness in the event of security incidents.
In addition, a crisis response exercise was conducted with the Executive Board and management team to test procedures in the event of an emergency and strengthen cross-departmental collaboration.
Environmental, Social & Corporate Governance
DENIC takes responsibility for environmental, social, and corporate governance issues. In 2025, we further expanded our ESG process. Based on our materiality analysis, we now track our environmental, social, and governance goals using specific KPIs. Issues such as pay equity, professional development, and environmental responsibility are firmly embedded in our daily work.
All teams have actively participated in successfully implementing the ESG process. It is not just a project, but a way of life: We combine measurable success with genuine responsibility for a sustainable digital future.
Trust that brings us together
DENICdirect is the first point of contact for .de domain holders; it manages domains in the TRANSIT process, processes WHOIS requests, and supports the community—a service that is also reflected in our key performance indicators.
Support Requests 2025
of the domains in the transit process were reclaimed by DENIC members
of support requests are made by phone
of support requests are submitted in writing
The European ccTLD-Community
DENIC takes on leadership roles at CENTR and in international institutions to drive forward processes and standards for ccTLDs. Our experts are active in a wide range of international bodies and help shape the development of ccTLD standards. Within the CENTR community, we drive more efficient processes, standardized workflows, and data-driven marketing, and as board members, we champion agile, focused working methods.
- Board Member Thomas Keller
is Chair of the CENTR Boards - Senior Policy Advisor Peter Koch
is a board member of the IGF-D and a member of the ccNSO Council at ICANN IGF-D - Sabrina Heber
heads the IGF-D Sekretariat - Head of Marketing Ulrich Retzlaff
is co-chair of the CENTR Marketing Working Group - Product Manager Sascha Kämpf
is co-chair of the CENTR Working Group „Business Operations & Processes“
DENIC Services is driving the next gTLD phase forward
In 2025, DENIC Services GmbH & Co. KG used the preparations for the next gTLD application round to solidify its position as a global leader in data escrow. With 2,856 of approximately 3,020 ICANN-accredited registrars, it held a 95% market share in registrar data escrow; the Net Promoter Score was +80.
Registry data escrow also grew: one ccTLD and 18 gTLDs were added. Daily data deposits secure approximately 51% of all domains worldwide.
Preparing for the Next Generation of TLDs
DENIC Services is accredited as a registry service provider for DNS and DNSSEC and is preparing for the new gTLD round. Most of the main registry service providers have already been secured as preferred partners; additional partnerships are nearing completion.