IPv4 addresses are effectively exhausted, a situation that became clear after the last allocations in 2011. Most remaining addresses now resemble what was once termed the "IPv4 address swamp," a term used by network operators in the 1990s to describe chaotic and inefficient address allocations. The current state shows a significant increase in the number of address registrations and routing entries, with prefix sizes shrinking. As of now, about 1 million entries exist in the IPv4 routing table, up from just 150,000 two decades ago. This growth in small /24 prefixes complicates address aggregation and impacts routing efficiency. The last five /8 IPv4 blocks allocated by IANA to Regional Internet Registries (RIRs) in 2011 are now almost fully assigned. For instance, by 2023, RIPE had assigned 99% of its /8 allocation, while other regions like AFRINIC had allocated very little. The market has responded to IPv4 scarcity with transactions involving large blocks of addresses going for substantial sums. Major cloud providers, such as Amazon and Microsoft, dominate the acquisition of these addresses, integrating them into their global infrastructures. The evolution of IPv4 address management has led to a fragmented landscape, mirroring the attributes of the old swamp. This fragmentation raises concerns about Internet security, as address volatility complicates threat mitigation strategies. The growing reliance on Network Address Translators (NATs) and the steady increase in IPv6 adoption highlight the urgency of addressing these challenges. Overall, the IPv4 address space has become a complex and competitive environment, reflecting a new normal that continues to evolve.