The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is a group of volunteers who develop and publicize Internet standards through specialist teams and working groups. They lack formal authority but have created many widely used protocols, including HTTP and IPv6. The IETF collaborates with other groups and receives support from the Internet Society. Standards are approved by the Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG) and the Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) helps transition new technologies.
The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is a loosely organized group of volunteers who discuss, develop, and publicize Internet standards. The group has some very unorthodox methods and lacks any official authority to enforce or control standards, but they have produced many of the most popular and widely used Internet protocols. Specific areas of interest or concern are addressed by specialist teams who formulate proposals that can become standard. The IETF also works closely with other groups that focus on Internet development.
Since the Internet has no central authority or governing body, many of the technologies that have become standard have been developed through the direct collaboration of users. The need for agreed rules for communication became clear very quickly and an ad hoc community became the architect of the Internet by adopting, revising or discarding different protocols and standards. The Internet Engineering Task Force operates in much the same way, with a motto of “rough consensus and working code.
The IETF is an unconventional entity in many ways. Some might argue that it is not an entity at all, since it never formally incorporated or organized itself. There is no formal membership or board of directors, and most of the actual work takes place on public email lists that anyone can join. No governmental or international agreement has recognized the IETF, so the group cannot force users to adopt its standards. It describes itself as simply a “collection of happenings”.
Despite its unique characteristics and relative lack of authority, the Internet Engineering Task Force has been responsible for creating or improving many of the most widely used online standards. Some of the standards the task force helped pioneer include the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) that powers the web, Kerberos network authentication protocol, and Post Office Protocol (POP) for email service. The IETF has also been heavily involved in the advancement of Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6), which includes more complex Internet addresses to increase the number of devices that can be connected to the network.
Most of the Internet Engineering Task Force’s technical work takes place in specialized teams of volunteers called Working Groups (WGs). Each working group has its own charter outlining the team’s mission and area of focus. The efforts of a working group may eventually produce a type of document known as a request for comments (RFC). Historically, these documents were informally distributed among computer enthusiasts to request feedback, but in more modern usage, an RFC can be used to formally publish a standard.
The Internet Engineering Task Force frequently collaborates with other Internet-related groups. It receives financial support from the Internet Society, a group dedicated to the dissemination and development of the World Wide Web. Standards created within the IETF are ultimately approved or rejected by the Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG). An organization known as the Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) also works with the IETF on transitioning new technologies from an experimental stage to a more complete state suitable for average users.
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