Provided is a method for establishing ownership of a component of an internet of things (“IoT”) device. The method comprises receiving, at a registration service, a request to register the component of the IoT device, the request comprising a public key of the component of the IoT device, an identifier of the component of the IoT device, and a public key of an owner of the component of the IoT device; determining a qualified name for the component of the IoT device based on a name associated with the owner of the component of the IoT device; generating one or more domain name system (“DNS”) records for the component of the IoT device, the one or more DNS records comprising an authentication file that identifies a chain of ownership of the component of the IoT device; and storing the one or more DNS records in a registry.