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Resource Library

Everyone should have access to an open and trusted Internet.
Read our reports, papers, and other documents for insight and vision on how we can get there.

Action Plan 2024

Our roadmap for tackling the threats and challenges for today’s Internet as we look to grow and defend it for future generations.

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2023 Year in Review

The Year in Review shows the steps we took in 2023 to ensure the Internet is for everyone. Learn about the positive difference we made for the Internet.

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Internet Impact Briefs

Shorter reports that analyze how different policies or new technologies may affect what the Internet needs to exist and thrive.

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Global Internet Report (GIR)

From trust to consolidation, access to sustainability, a deep look at the forces shaping our digital future.

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Policy Briefs

Our perspective on critical Internet issues, including community networks, encryption, open Internet standards, Internet Exchange Points, and more.

Community Networks: Regulatory issues and gaps – Experiences from India

This paper reflects views and opinions of community network providers who are trying to build their own low-cost and effective infrastructure for providing Internet connectivity ...

Internet Society contribution to WTDC 2017

The Internet Society submitted the attached contribution to the ITU World Telecommunication Development Conference 2017 (WTDC 2017). The document is available in French and Spanish by the use of the ...

Global Internet Report 2017: Paths to Our Digital Future

The Report focuses attention on the significant potential of the Internet for innovation and sustainable development, but without denying or shirking the challenges it also introduces ...

New Security Mechanisms for Network Time Synchronization Protocols

As evolving security concerns have prevailed, the network time synchronization protocol community has been actively engaged in the development of improved security mechanisms for both the IEEE 1588 Precision Time ...

NYC Mesh Interim Report June, 2017

NYC Mesh: Internet for Everyone

More than one in four New Yorkers lack access to broadband internet at home, according to the city comptroller ...

Issue Paper: Asia-Pacific Bureau – Digital Accessibility

Building on the human rights perspective and business case for digital accessibility presented in the Internet Society Policy Brief on Accessibility,[1] this issues paper focuses on the challenges and opportunities ...

A Brave New World: How the Internet Affects Societies

On 11 May 2017 the Internet Society and Chatham House convened a roundtable discussion, held under the Chatham House Rule, at which a culturally and geographically diverse set of participants ...

Tajikistan Internet Exchange Point Environment Assessment

The establishment of an efficient Internet exchange point (IXP) in Tajikistan is a key part of improving the overall Internet ecosystem in the country, not only at a technical level ...

Ensuring Sustainable Connectivity in Small Island Developing States

This report aims to shed light on the key connectivity issues for SIDS nations and to help share knowledge on potential strategies to address them for national and regional policy ...

Supporting the Creation and Scalability of Affordable Access Solutions: Understanding Community Networks in Africa

Community networks, communications infrastructure deployed and operated by citizens to meet their own communication needs, are being increasingly proposed as a solution to connect the unconnected ...

The Year that Was: A report on the initiatives and activities of the Asia-Pacific Bureau for 2016

This report was put together to outline some of the key initiatives undertaken by the Internet Society’s Asia-Pacific (APAC) Regional Bureau in 2016. While it is not meant to be ...

A Case Study in Local Content Hosting: Speed, Visits, and Cost of Access

The availability of locally relevant content is increasingly seen as a limiting factor in the widespread adoption of the Internet in emerging regions such as sub-Saharan Africa ...

Archives

Call for submissions by the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression

1 November 2016 Question addressed:

Please share information concerning the role of relevant standards and Internet governance bodies in protecting and promoting freedom of expression, and how that ...

2016 Email Marketing & Unsubscribe Audit

The 2016 Audit found that the vast majority of top online retailers have embraced unsubscribe best practices that go beyond mere compliance and have shown improvement since 2014 despite more ...

Overview of the Digital Object Architecture (DOA)

In preparation for the ITU's World Telecommunications Standardization Assembly (WTSA) 2016, the Internet Society received multiple questions around the Digital Object Architecture (DOA) being cited in several WTSA resolutions. To ...

Policy Brief: Internet Invariants

As the Internet becomes an increasingly more pervasive and critical piece of infrastructure, we need to understand both the network’s challenges and opportunities if we want it to continue to ...

Online Identity: Who, Me?

This brief document is the first of a series which is intended to serve as a useful reference for online identity-related topics, and will include links to a number of ...

Policy Brief: Zero-Rating

Recognizing that zero-rating has become a marketing tool for service providers and a policy issue for regulators, the Internet Society aims to provide a general framework for reviewing zero-rating offers ...

Policy Brief: The Internet of Things

Billions of smart devices are expected to come online in the coming decade, bringing with them the promise of global economic opportunities and new innovations that will transform the way ...

IANA Amicus Brief

On September 30, 2016, organizations and individuals within the Internet's technical and business communities filed the attached amicus brief in the lawsuit filed by the Attorney Generals of Arizona, Texas, ...

RW10k: Combating Spam as Network Operators

RW10k: Combating Spam as Network Operators
The Rwanda Information & Communicat ion Technology Association (RICTA) learned a tough lesson in 2016 when their web servers were attacked and used ...

Support for the timely transition of IANA Stewardship

September 12, 2016
The Honorable Charles Grassley
Chairman, U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary 135 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Ted Cruz
Chairman, Subcommittee on ...

Promoting Content In Africa

The vision of the Internet Society is that the Internet is for everyone, everywhere, and to help achieve this aim we have conducted a number of studies of barriers to ...

Organization Reports

On annual basis, we publish annual reports (an Action Plan and Impact Report), as well as financial reports, annual financial statements, and Form 990s.