Prior to mapping some of the most secure and complex intranets in the world, Lumeta began a long-term research project to collect routing data on the Internet. Using Lumeta’s IPsonar®, the Internet Mapping Project involves frequent path probes, one to each registered Internet entity. From this data, maps are built to show the paths to most of the networks on the Internet and a topology of the “center” of the Internet. These paths change over time, as routes reconfigure and the Internet grows.

Lumeta preserves this data and subsequent IPsonar scans show how the Internet is expanding, which can be used to study a variety of Internet problems and changes. The maps can be color coded by a variety of topics – geography, IP address, and distance from the test host, among others.

Data from the Internet Mapping Project can help organizations gain visibility into the following:

• Existing ISP connections and the ISP’s connections several hops out to aid in the discovery of unsafe connections
  
• Devices with unauthorized connectivity to and/or from the Internet, which can support compliance with the Trusted Internet Connections Initiative and other mandates
  
• All IPv6 nodes and what percentage are owned by which geographical entities
  
• Path efficiency to support decisions about where to base operations or develop outsourcing partnerships (i.e., a location with a more optimized path might be good for an organizations’ IT headquarters)
  
• The impact of unexpected disasters (e.g., if a scan is performed and another scan closely follows that shows fewer to no connections, a disaster, natural or otherwise, may have just occurred)

IPsonar and Internet Mapping
The same technology that is used to map the Internet is leveraged by the world’s most security-conscious organizations to achieve global network visibility, prioritize areas of vulnerability, and maintain network security, availability and compliance.

IPsonar provides an Internet Mapping capability that:

• Tracks nodes/routers for visibility into which routers are passed through a path from one spot to another
  
• Identifies and distinguishes IPv4- and IPv6-capable devices to support IPv6 migration
  
• Collects roundtrip connection time to provide insight into areas for remediation
  
• Discovers who owns the nodes (e.g., Verizon, Comcast, MCI, etc.) by displaying who owns the domain
  
• Creates a snapshot of the connections from one location to a specified number of hops out
  
• Colors the map by node/path owner
  
• Shows where routers sit in relation to other routers