***Announcement: Merit to convert to 'PGPKEY' authentication (RFC 2726)

On 7/30/00 between 5 AM - 8 AM EDT Merit will convert from 'PGP-FROM' to
'PGPKEY' authentication as described in RFC 2726.  All maintainer
object 'PGP-FROM' instances will be converted to a 'PGPKEY' instance
and a 'key-cert' object will be created for each unique 'PGPKEY'
instance.  After the conversion all public keys used for signing
DB submissions will be visible in the registry as 'key-cert' objects.
Registering public keys allows users to verify a maintainer's identity
and to submit, update and maintain their own public keys like any other
DB object.  Normal PGP signing of DB submissions will continue to work
exactly as before the conversion.  The conversion should be seamless to
our DB user community and no action is required.

Merit will send email to all users who will be affected by the conversion.
The notice will give users a chance to remove their PGP references
if (for whatever reason) they do not wish to take part in the new
PGP authentication scheme.

The new 'PGPKEY' scheme makes it easier for users to integrate PGP signing
into their DB update process.  It is our wish that into the future all
registry users will PGP sign their DB submissions.   Please see
www.radb.net/docs/keyfaq.html for additional information on the conversion
process and tutorial information regarding the use of 'PGPKEY' authentication.
Please consult RFC 2726 for the authoritative specification.

IRRd team
--Gerald Winters