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International Organization for Standardization

ISO is the International Organization for Standardization, the world’s largest developer of international standards. It consists of a global network of 173 national standards bodies – our members. Each member represents ISO in its country. The organisation brings together global experts to share knowledge and develop voluntary, consensus-based, market-relevant international standards. It is best known for its catalogue of around 25,000 standards, spanning a wide range of sectors, including technology, food, and healthcare.

Digital activities

A large number of international standards and related documents developed by ISO are related to information and communications technologies (ICTs), such as the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI), which was created in 1983 to establish a universal reference model for communications protocols. The organisation is also active in the field of emerging technologies, including blockchain, the internet of things (IoT), and AI. The standards are developed by various technical committees dedicated to specific areas, including information security, cybersecurity, privacy protection, AI, and intelligent transport systems.

Digital policy issues

Artificial intelligence

The joint technical committee of ISO and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on AI is known as ISO/IEC JTC1/SC 42 Artificial intelligence and is responsible for the development of standards in this area. To date, it has published 34 standards specifically pertaining to AI, with 41 others in development. ISO/IEC 42001 is the flagship AI management system standard, which provides requirements for establishing, implementing, maintaining, and continually improving an AI management system within the context of an organisation. ISO/IEC TR 24028 provides an overview of trustworthiness in AI systems, detailing the associated threats and risks and addressing approaches on availability, resiliency, reliability, accuracy, safety, security, and privacy. Other recently published standards include those that cover concepts and terminology for AI (ISO/IEC 22989); bias in AI systems and AI-aided decision-making (ISO/IEC TR 24027); AI risk management (ISO/IEC 23894); a framework for AI systems using machine learning (ISO/IEC 23053); and the assessment of machine learning classification performance (ISO/IEC TS 4213). Other standards under development to support ISO/IEC 42001 include ISO/IEC 42005 on AI system impact assessments and ISO/IEC 42006, which contains requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of AI management systems. Up-to-date information on the technical committee (e.g. scope, programme of work, contact details) can be found on the committee page.

ISO has joined forces with its World Standards Cooperation (WSC) partners IEC and ITU to create the International AI Standards Summit, to be held on 2 and 3 December in Seoul and hosted by the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS). The initiative was announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos and responds to the UN’s call to enhance AI governance through international standards following the adoption of the Global Digital Compact by world leaders in September 2024.

In July, the WSC will join leading experts at the International AI Standards Day during the AI for Good Global Summit to help shape AI governance.ISO is also working alongside IEC and ITU in the AI and Multimedia Authenticity Standards Collaboration, launched in 2024 to develop global standards for AI watermarking, multimedia authenticity, and deepfake detection technologies.

Cloud computing

ISO and IEC also have a joint committee for standards related to cloud computing that currently has 29 published standards and a further 14 in development. Of those published, two standards of note include ISO/IEC 19086-1, which provides an overview, foundational concepts, and definitions for a cloud computing service level agreement framework, and ISO/IEC 22123-3, which specifies the cloud computing reference architecture. Other standards recently published include those on health informatics (ISO/TR 21332); the audit of cloud services (ISO/IEC 22123-2); and data flow, categories, and use (ISO/IEC 19944 series). Standards under development include the ISO/IEC 10822 series on multi-cloud management. Up-to-date information on the technical committee (e.g. scope, programme of work, contact details) can be found on the committee page.

Internet of things

Recognising the ongoing developments in the field of IoT, ISO currently has 50 published standards on the subject, including those for intelligent transport systems (ISO 19079), future networks for IoT (ISO/IEC TR 29181 series), unique identification for IoT (ISO/IEC 29161), internet of media things (ISO/IEC 23093-3), the trustworthiness of IoT (ISO/IEC 30149), and industrial IoT systems (ISO/IEC 30162). IoT security is addressed in standards such as ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27002, which provide a common language for governance, risk, and compliance issues related to information security. In addition, there are standards that provide a methodology for the trustworthiness of an IoT system or service (ISO/IEC 30147); a trustworthiness framework (ISO/IEC 30149); requirements for an IoT data exchange platform for various IoT services (ISO/IEC 30161); and a real-time IoT framework (ISO/IEC 30165). A further 20 standards are in development. Up-to-date information on the ISO and IEC joint technical committee on IoT (e.g. scope, programme of work, contact details) can be found on the committee page.

Telecommunication infrastructure

ISO has published 12 standards on blockchain and distributed ledger technologies. Of these, ISO/TR 23455 gives an overview of smart contracts in blockchain and distributed ledger technologies; ISO/TR 23244 tackles privacy and personally identifiable information protection; ISO 22739 covers fundamental blockchain terminology; ISO/TR 23576 deals with security management of digital asset custodians; ISO/TS 23258 specifies a taxonomy and ontology; and ISO/TS 23635 provides guidelines for governance. A further 12 standards are in development, including ISO/TS 18126, which specifies a taxonomy and classification for smart contracts, and ISO 20435, which provides a framework for representing physical assets using tokens. Up-to-date information on the technical committee (e.g. scope, programme of work, contact details) can be found on the committee page.

Blockchain

ISO has published 11 standards on blockchain and distributed ledger technologies: ISO/TR 23455 gives an overview of smart contracts in blockchain and distributed ledger technologies; ISO/TR 23244 tackles privacy and personally identifiable information protection; and ISO 22739 covers fundamental blockchain terminology respectively. ISO also has a further eight standards on blockchain in development. These include those related to: security management of digital asset custodians (ISO/TR 23576); taxonomy and ontology (ISO/TS 23258); and guidelines for governance (ISO/TS 23635). Up-to-date information on the technical committee (e.g. scope, programme of work, contact details, etc.) can be found on the committee page.

Emerging technologies

ISO develops standards that address many different emerging technologies. These include more than 40 standards either published or in development on robotics, covering issues such as collaborative robots (e.g. ISO/TS 15066), safety requirements for industrial robots (e.g. ISO 10218 series), and personal care robots (e.g. ISO 13482).

The ISO technical committee on intelligent transport systems (ITS) has over 350 published standards, including those on forward vehicle collision warning systems (ISO 15623) and management of electronic traffic regulations (ISO/TS 24315-1). Standards are also being developed to address the use of virtual reality in learning, education, and training (e.g. ISO/IEC 23843).A further three issues are currently being explored in collaboration with IEC, with further developments anticipated in the next couple of years: bio-digital convergence, the metaverse, and brain–computer interfaces (ISO/IEC JTC1/SC43).

Quantum technologies

In January 2024, ISO and IEC launched a new joint technical committee, ISO/IEC JTC 3, on quantum technologies. The committee will develop standards on quantum computing, quantum simulation, quantum sources, quantum metrology, quantum detectors, quantum communications, and fundamental quantum technologies. One standard, on the quantum computing vocabulary (ISO/IEC 4879), has already been published, and an introduction to quantum computing (ISO/IEC TR 18157) is in development.

Network security

ISO and IEC jointly develop standards that address information security and network security. The ISO/IEC 27000 family of standards covers information security management systems (ISMSs) and can be used by organisations to secure information assets such as financial data, intellectual property, and employee information. For example, ISO/IEC 27031 and ISO/IEC 27035 are specifically designed to help organisations respond to, diffuse, and recover effectively from cyberattacks. ISO/IEC 27701, an extension of ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27002, details requirements and guidance for establishing, implementing, maintaining, and continually improving a privacy information management system (PIMS). We have also developed a handbook to assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in establishing and maintaining an ISMS according to ISO/IEC 27001, the premier standard for information security. Network security is also addressed by standards on technologies such as IoT, smart community infrastructures, medical devices, localisation and tracking systems, and future networks. Up-to-date information on the joint ISO and IEC technical committee (e.g. scope, programme of work, contact details) can be found on the committee page.

Encryption

As more and more information (including sensitive personal data) is stored, transmitted, and processed online, the security, integrity, and confidentiality of such information become increasingly important. To this end, ISO has a number of standards for the encryption of data. For example, ISO/IEC 18033-1 addresses the nature of encryption and describes certain general aspects of its use and properties. Other standards include ISO/IEC 19772, which covers authenticated encryption, ISO/IEC 18033-3, which specifies encryption systems (ciphers) for data confidentiality purposes, and ISO 19092, which allows for encryption of biometric data used for authentication of individuals in financial services for confidentiality or other reasons.

ISO also has standards that focus on identity-based ciphers, symmetric and asymmetric encryption, public key infrastructure, and other related areas.

Data governance

Big data represents another significant area of standardisation for ISO, with around 80% of related standards being developed by ISO/IEC JTC1/SC42. The terminology for standards related to big data is defined in ISO/IEC 20546, while ISO/IEC 20547-3 covers big data reference architecture. ISO/IEC TR 20547-2 provides examples of big data use cases with application domains and technical considerations, and ISO/IEC TR 20547-5 details a roadmap of existing and future standards in this area. Up-to-date information on the technical committee (e.g. scope, programme of work, contact details) can be found on the committee page.

Digital identities

Digital signatures that validate digital identities help ensure the integrity of data and the authenticity of particulars in online transactions, thereby contributing to the security of online applications and services. Standards to support this technology cover elements such as anonymous digital signatures (e.g. ISO/IEC 20008 series); digital signatures for healthcare documents (e.g. ISO 17090-4 and ISO 17090-5); and blind digital signatures, in which the content of the message to be signed is concealed, used in contexts where, for example, anonymity is required. Examples of such standards include ISO 18370-1 and ISO/IEC 18370-2.

Privacy and data protection

Privacy and data protection in the context of ICTs is another area addressed by ISO standards. One prominent example, ISO/IEC 29101, describes a privacy architecture framework. Others include standards for privacy-enhancing protocols and services for identification cards (ISO/IEC 19286); privacy protection requirements pertaining to learning, education, and training systems employing information technologies (ISO/IEC 29187-1); privacy aspects in the context of intelligent transport systems (ISO/TR 12859); and security and privacy requirements for health informatics (ISO/TS 14441).

ISO in numbers

ISO is proud to count 173 members.

Our experts work across 823 technical committees and subcommittees.

In 2024, we published 1,533 new standards and related documents.

The ISO store contains more than 25,703* international standards and related documents.

* Total as of end December 2024.

Digital tools

ISO’s online browsing platform provides up-to-date information on ISO standards, graphical symbols, publications, and terms and definitions.

Joint Inspection Unit

The JIU is the only independent external oversight body of the United Nations system mandated to conduct reviews, evaluations, and inspections at a system-wide level.

Its mandate is to look at cross-cutting issues and to act as an agent for change across the UN system. The JIU works to enhance efficiency in management and administration and to promote greater coordination among agencies. It is dedicated to assisting the 28 organisations that have signed the JIU Statute in meeting their governance responsibilities. In its reports and notes, the JIU identifies best practices, facilitates knowledge-sharing, and makes recommendations to executive heads and governing bodies, individually or as a group.

Over the years, the JIU has contributed to several areas of work with the objective of enhancing management and administrative efficiency and of promoting greater coordination among the UN organisations. Some of the JIU’s key focus points have included executive management and other administrative matters, human resources, strategic planning and oversight, results-based management, and risk management, among others. The JIU recommendations have also supported senior management teams among UN organisations in developing or reviewing strategies and policies. Since 1995, its thematic agenda has also included information and communications technology (ITC) governance. In recent years, the JIU has approached digital technology from a more strategic perspective.

Digital activities

Over the years, the JIU has contributed to several areas of work aimed at enhancing management and administrative efficiency and promoting greater coordination among UN organisations. Relevant to the topic of information and communications technology governance and digital policy, the JIU has issued the following reports in recent years:

In today’s rapidly evolving digital age, the JIU reaffirms its commitment to leveraging digital transformation to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of its mandate. By adopting efficient digital platforms, the JIU has enhanced the accessibility and transparency of its reports, recommendations, and findings for member states and other stakeholders. Digitalisation has also enabled greater agility in conducting inspections and evaluations, allowing for virtual consultations and remote data collection in a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable manner.

To further advance digital work, the JIU is committed to strengthening its internal digital capacity, fostering a culture of innovation, and prioritising knowledge sharing across the UN system. These efforts include promoting the use of data analytics and AI in its reviews to generate deeper insights and evidence-based recommendations. For that matter, the JIU has included the review of data governance in UN system organisations in its 2025 programme of work.

The JIU continues to work collaboratively with other entities in the UN system to harness the transformative potential of digital technology in achieving the UN objectives. The JIU invites all stakeholders to engage with its digital initiatives and contribute to a shared vision of a more modern, connected, and digitally empowered UN system. Together, we can navigate the challenges and seize the opportunities of the digital era to build a more effective and inclusive multilateral system.

Digital policy issues

Cloud computing

The report entitled Managing Cloud Computing Services in the UN System argues for a more balanced approach in unlocking the potential benefits of the cloud and in considering specific risks, in addition to the potential synergies from a UN system-wide perspective. The JIU proposed a number of safeguards and actions to expand UN common knowledge on cloud computing, increase the level of inter-agency cooperation, and strengthen the negotiating capacity of UN organisations.

Blockchain

A lucid and balanced analysis of blockchain was the result of a landmark report on Blockchain Applications in the UN System: Towards a State of Readiness. The report starts from the assumption that the UN cannot stand aside and passively watch developments in the industry, but it is far from promoting the use of blockchain. It offers a critical assessment of the theoretical benefits of blockchain and proposes a cautious, yet proactive approach to potential applications. The recommendations made by the JIU signify a bold move from a traditional compliance perspective to a more prospective focus, from a prescriptive standpoint to a more flexible and anticipative set of actions. The main asset of the report is an original decision-making matrix–developed in full consideration of the UN context – for the rigorous determination of use cases for which the blockchain could be a better option compared to other alternatives. The report specifically references the World Food Programme’s Building Blocks project and examines blockchain applications in humanitarian contexts, including United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)’s cash-based interventions using blockchain technology.

Cybersecurity

A comprehensive review of individual and inter-agency mechanisms dealing with cybersecurity is offered in the report entitled Cybersecurity in the United Nations System Organisations. The report assesses how UN organisations are addressing cybersecurity threats, and the challenges and risks they face, including risk mitigation measures. Particular attention is paid to the vulnerabilities specific to the UN. The review focuses on the opportunities for strengthening collaboration and coordination among organisations and for a closer alignment of physical security and cybersecurity, and for improving linkages between system-wide strategic direction and operational capacity. Some recommendations aim to strengthen the key role of the UN International Computing Centre (UN ICC) as a cybersecurity service provider.

Capacity development

The issue of e-learning platforms was extensively addressed for the first time at the UN system-wide level in a report entitled Policies and Platforms in Support of Learning: Towards more Coherence, Coordination and Convergence. The report analyses the potential of new digital technologies as a driving factor that facilitates and stimulates system-wide synergies and convergence. According to the report, current technology-enabled trends and capabilities, such as the increase in remote interactions, mobility, portability, and use of a personal cloud storage system, require the adjustment of policies, curricula, and institutional arrangements. For the UN system, growing digital infrastructure amplifies the ability of UN organisations and their staff to access and use nearly unlimited knowledge resources. The same technologies offer unprecedented networking options, which should be unconditionally used for more coherence, coordination, and convergence among UN agencies.

International Electrotechnical Commission

The IEC is the world leader in preparing international standards for all electrical, electronic, and related technologies. A global, not-for-profit membership organisation, the IEC provides a neutral and independent institutional framework to around 170 countries, coordinating the work of some 30,000 experts. We administer four IEC Conformity Assessment System s, representing the largest working multilateral agreement based on the one-time testing of products globally. The members of each system certify that devices, systems, installations, services, and people perform as required.

IEC international standards represent a global consensus of state-of-the-art know-how and expertise. Together with conformity assessment, they are foundational for international trade.

IEC standards incorporate the needs of many stakeholders in every participating country and form the basis for testing and certification. Experts come from both developed and developing countries. Each member country and all its stakeholders represented through the IEC National Committees have one vote and a say in what goes into an IEC international standard.

Our work is used to verify the safety, performance, and interoperability of electric and electronic devices and systems such as mobile phones, refrigerators, office and medical equipment, or electricity generation. It also helps accelerate digital transformation, artificial intelligence (AI), or virtual reality applications, protects information technology (IT) and critical infrastructure systems from cyberattacks and increases the safety of people and the environment.

Digital activities

The IEC works to ensure that its activities have a global reach to meet all the challenges of digital transformation worldwide. The organisation covers an array of digital policy issues. IEC international standards and conformity assessment play a crucial role in shaping global AI and digital policies by providing a structured, collaborative, and consensus-driven framework that addresses technical, ethical, and governance challenges.

Digital policy issues

Artificial intelligence

AI applications are driving digital transformation across diverse industries, including energy, healthcare, smart manufacturing, transport, and other strategic sectors that rely on IEC Standards and Conformity Assessment Systems. AI technologies allow insights and analytics that go far beyond the capabilities of legacy analytic systems.

For example, the digital transformation of the grid enables increased automation, making it more efficient and able to seamlessly integrate fluctuating renewable energy sources. IEC standards pave the way for the use of a variety of digital technologies relating to intelligent energy. They deal with issues such as the integration of renewable energies within the electrical network but also increased automatisation.

A joint IEC and ISO technical committee on AI, JTC1/SC 42, brings together technology experts, as well as ethicists, lawyers, social scientists, and others to develop generic and foundational standards (horizontal standards). IEC experts focus on sector-specific needs (vertical standards) and conformity assessment.

JTC 1/SC 42 addresses concerns about the use and application of AI technologies. For example, data quality standards for ML and analytics are crucial for helping to ensure that applied technologies produce useful insights and eliminate faulty features.

Governance standards in AI and the big data analytics business process framework address how the technologies can be governed and overseen from a management perspective. International standards in the areas of trustworthiness, ethics, and societal concerns will ensure responsible deployment.

Quantum computing

The joint IEC and ISO technical committee for quantum technologies, IEC/ISO JTC 3, is working on standards for all aspects of quantum, including computing, metrology, sources, detectors, communications and fundamental quantum technologies.

Infrastructure

The IEC develops standards for many of the technologies that support digital transformation. Fibre optic cables, sensors, semiconductors, cloud and edge computing are examples.

Cloud computing

The joint ISO/IEC technical committee prepares standards for cloud computing, including distributed platforms and edge devices. The standards cover key requirements relating to data storage and recovery.

Network security and critical infrastructure

The IEC develops cybersecurity standards and conformity assessment for IT and operational technology (O T). Cybersecurity is often understood only in terms of IT, which leaves critical infrastructure, such as power utilities, transport systems, manufacturing plants and hospitals, vulnerable to attacks.

Digital tools

The IEC has developed a number of online tools and services designed to help everyone with their daily activities.

Find out more
IEC website
IEC news and blog
IEC e-tech

Social media channels

LinkedIn @IECStandards

Facebook @InternationalElectrotechnicalCommission

YouTube @IECstandards

European Organization for Nuclear Research

CERN is widely recognised as one of the world’s leading laboratories for particle physics. At CERN, physicists and engineers probe the fundamental structure of matter that makes up our universe. To do this, they use the world’s largest and most complex scientific instruments – particle accelerators and detectors. Technologies developed at CERN go on to have a significant impact through their applications in wider society.

Digital activities

CERN has had an important role in the history of computing and networks. The World Wide Web (WWW) was invented at CERN by Sir Tim Berners-Lee. The web was originally conceived and developed to meet the demand for automated information-sharing between scientists at universities and institutes around the world.

Grid computing, the precursor of modern cloud computing, was also developed at CERN with partners across a worldwide community and with funding from the European Commission. Today, the Organisation carries out pioneering activities in the areas of cybersecurity, big data processing, long-term data preservation, deep learning (DL) and artificial intelligence (AI), and quantum technologies.

Digital policy issues

Artificial intelligence

AI-related projects are developed and referred to as part of the CERN openlab activities.

Through CERN openlab, European Commission-funded projects and collaborations with other international organisations, CERN collaborates with leading information and communications technology (ICT) companies and research institutes. The R&D projects carried out through different public-private partnerships address topics related to ultra-fast data acquisition, accelerated computing platforms, data storage architectures, computer provisioning and management, networks and communication, deep learning and data analytics, and quantum technologies. CERN researchers use Machine Learning techniques as part of their efforts to maximise the discovery potential and optimise resource usage. ML and DL are used, for instance, to improve the performance of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) experiments in areas such as particle detection and managing computing resources. Going one step further, at the intersection of AI and quantum computing, the CERN Quantum Technology Initiative is exploring the feasibility of using quantum algorithms to track the particles produced by collisions in the LHC, and is working on developing quantum algorithms to help optimise how data is distributed for storage in the Worldwide LHC Computing Grid (WLCG). The CERN Quantum Technology Initiative (QTI) activities, launched in 2020 to shape CERN’s role in the next quantum revolution. In 2024, CERN launched the Open Quantum Institute, a three-year pilot programme that will help unleash the full power of quantum computing for the benefit of all.

CERN openlab: a public-private partnership in which CERN collaborates with ICT companies and other research organisations to accelerate the development of cutting-edge solutions for the research community, including ML.
CERN QTI: a comprehensive R&D, academic, and knowledge-sharing initiative to exploit the quantum advantage for high-energy physics and beyond. Given CERN’s increasing ITC and computing demands, as well as the significant national and international interests in quantum-technology activities, it aims to provide dedicated mechanisms for the exchange of both knowledge and innovation.
CERN OQI: Following a successful one-year incubation period led by the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator (GESDA), the three-year CERN-based pilot was launched in March 2024. Proposed, designed, and incubated through GESDA, in collaboration with some 180 experts from all over the world, the OQI is a multilateral science diplomacy initiative, uniting academia, technology companies, the private sector, the diplomatic community, philanthropy organisations, and global citizens in a joint effort towards more open and inclusive quantum computing. By facilitating equal access to cutting-edge nascent technologies and serving as the societal arm of QTI, the OQI seeks to accelerate the potential of quantum computing for all society and to support the development of concrete quantum solutions aimed at achieving the UN sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Next Generation Triggers: The Next Generation Triggers project, or NextGen, started in January 2024 as a collaboration between CERN (the Experimental Physics, Theoretical Physics and Information Technology Departments) and the ATLAS and CMS experiments. The key objective of the five-year NextGen project is to get more physics information out of the HL-LHC data. The hope is to uncover as-yet-unseen phenomena by more efficiently selecting interesting physics events while rejecting background noise. Scientists will make use of neural network optimisation, quantum-inspired algorithms, high-performance computing and field-programmable gate array (FPGA) techniques to improve the theoretical modelling and optimise their tools in the search for ultra-rare events.

Cloud computing

Within its work, CERN refers to ‘cloud computing’ as ‘distributed computing.

The scale and complexity of data from the LHC, the world’s largest particle accelerator, is unprecedented. This data needs to be stored, easily retrieved, and analysed by physicists worldwide. This requires massive storage facilities, global networking, immense computing power, and funding. CERN initially did not have the computing or financial resources to crunch all of the data on-site, so in 2002 it turned to grid computing to share the burden with computer centres around the world. The WLCG builds on the ideas of grid technology initially proposed by Ian Foster and Carl Kesselman in 1999. The WLCG relies on a distributed computing infrastructure, as data from the collisions of protons or heavy ions is distributed via the internet for processing at data centres worldwide. The approach of using virtual machines was a precursor to the same paradigm used today in cloud computing. Today, CERN is developing new grid and cloud technologies in particular for large-scale AI deployment. It is expected that CERN’s further developments in the field of data processing will continue to influence digital technologies.

CERN has two data centres – one in Meyrin and a second one in Prévessin. The average amount of collision data recorded on disk by the LHC experiments is currently a little under 3 petabytes (PB) per day, which is almost equal to what was recorded in one month during Run 1.

All data produced at CERN still passes through the Meyrin Data Centre, which is the only facility connected to all experimental sites via ultra-fast optical fibre networks.

The Worldwide LHC Computing Grid (WLCG) consists of around 170 centres distributed across 40 countries. IN 2025, the WLCG celebrates its first 20 years.

Telecommunication infrastructure

Within its work, CERN refers to ‘telecommunication infrastructure’ as ‘network infrastructure’.

In the 1970s, CERN developed CERNET, a lab-wide network to access mainframe computers in its data centre. This pioneering network eventually led to CERN becoming an early European adopter of Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) for use in connecting systems on site. In 1989, CERN opened its first external TCP/IP connections and by 1990, CERN had become the largest internet site in Europe and was ready to host the first WWW server. Nowadays, in addition to the WLCG and its distributed computing infrastructure, CERN is also the host of the CERN Internet eXchange Point (CIXP), which optimises CERN’s internet connectivity and is also open to interested internet service providers (ISPs).

Through the CERN Quantum Technology Initiative, CERN is actively working to deliver more precise frequency signals from national metrology institutes to CERN experiments and beyond, and to improve the reliability of future quantum networks.

Digital standards

Within its work, CERN addresses ‘web standards’ as ‘open science’.

Ever since releasing the World Wide Web software under an open-source model in 1994, CERN has been a pioneer in the open-source field, supporting open-source hardware (with the CERN Open Hardware Licence), open access (with the Sponsoring Consortium for Open Access Publishing in Particle Physics SCOAP3) and open data (with the CERN Open Data Portal). Several CERN technologies are being developed with open science in mind, such as Indico, InvenioRDM, REANA, and Zenodo. Open-source software, such as CERNBox, CERN Tape Archive (CTA), EOS, File Transfer Service (FTS), GeantIV, ROOT, RUCIO, and Service for Web-Based Analysis (SWAN), has been developed to handle, distribute, and analyse the huge volumes of data generated by the LHC experiments and are also made available to the wider society.

Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) (in the context of the additional work done by IETF on internet standards)
Pushing the Boundaries of Open Science at CERN: Submission to the UNESCO Open Science Consultation

Digital tools

Data governance

Within its work, CERN refers to ‘data governance’ as ‘data preservation’.

CERN manages vast amounts of data; not only scientific data, but also data in more common formats such as webpages, images and videos, documents, and more. For instance, the CERN Data Centre processes on average one petabyte (one million gigabytes) of data per day. As such, the organisation notes that it faces the challenge of preserving its digital memory. CERN also points to the fact that many of the tools that are used to preserve data generated by the LHC and other scientific projects are also suitable for preserving other types of data and are made available to wider society.

The CERN Open Data Policy for scientific experiments at the LHC is essential to make scientific research more reproducible, accessible, and collaborative. It reflects the values enshrined in the CERN Convention for more than 60 years and reaffirmed in the European Strategy for Particle Physics (2020), aiming at empowering the LHC experiments to adopt a consistent approach towards openness and preservation of experimental data (applying FAIR standards to better share and reuse data).

EOSC Future is an EU-funded project contributing to the establishment of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) to provide a Web of FAIR Data and Services for science in Europe. The implementation of EOSC is based on the long-term process of alignment and coordination pursued by the Commission since 2015.

CERN joined the recently formed EOSC Association in 2020. The EOSC Association is the legal entity established to govern EOSC and has since grown to more than 250 members and observers.