Keys

The Registry refuses a proposed key on one of the six grounds below and on no other. It states which ground it has applied, and an organisation whose key is refused may propose another at once, without making a fresh application. An applicant may give a second choice of key when it applies, which the Registry considers if the first is refused.

The key is already reserved

The key belongs to a listed organisation. No two organisations may hold the same key at the same time, and the Registry does not ask a listed organisation to give up a key so that another may have it.

The key has been retired

The key belonged to an organisation that has been removed or that has changed its key. Retired keys are not reissued, so that a record of an old exchange can never be read as the act of a different organisation.

The key is a reserved word

The names of the institutions of the Network, and of the Network itself, are reserved. So are the words used by the Network's own systems for their internal purposes. The list is not published in full, but the Registry states which word was objected to whenever it refuses on this ground.

The key is liable to be confused with another

The key differs from a reserved or retired key only by a hyphen, by the substitution of a digit for a letter of similar appearance, or by transposition. The purpose of a key is to be unmistakable, and a key that invites a mistake defeats it.

The key is misleading

The key suggests a function the organisation does not perform, a status it does not hold or a connection with another member that does not exist.

The key does not take the required form

The key uses characters that are not permitted, is shorter than three characters or longer than thirty-two, begins or ends with a hyphen, or contains a run of two or more hyphens.

1. 1

   Step 1: Application to change

   The organisation applies in writing, giving its present key, the key it proposes, the reason for the change and the date from which it wishes the change to take effect. That date must be at least twenty-eight days after the application.

2. 2

   Step 2: Check of the proposed key

   The Registry checks the proposed key against the rules on form and against the register of keys, in the same way as on a first application. A key that would be refused to a new applicant is refused here.

3. 3

   Step 3: Notice of the change

   The change is published in a numbered notice at least fourteen days before it takes effect. The notice gives the former key, the new key and the date, so that members can prepare their systems.

4. 4

   Step 4: The change takes effect

   On the date given in the notice the register is amended and the new key is reserved. For twenty-eight days from that date, systems on the Network accept the former key alongside the new one, so that an exchange in progress is not broken.

5. 5

   Step 5: Retirement of the former key

   At the end of the twenty-eight days the former key is retired and refused. It is recorded in the register of keys with the date of retirement and is never reissued. A certificate bearing the new key is issued in place of the old one, without further charge.