Hello everyone
This is the running update from the Executive Director. Have questions or comments? Suggest some added information or edits? Contact the ED colin at kantarainitiative dot org.
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I Spring is here! Well apI start this as the 'beast from the east' weather bomb blasts through the UK, while our members in Austrlalia and New Zealand bask in the sunshine of one of the best summers for years (a little too hot in Australia which produces those deadly bushfires).
February has seen an unprecedented level of downloads from our Reports and Recommendations web repository. Downloads are more than double year on year, primarily due to the strong reporting of our Blockchain Smart Contracts Report from mainstream media. While you heard it here first several months ago and also by following @kantaranews on Twitter, we re-ran the story again early in February. In just a 3 day period during the month we hit 118 downloads. Good download numbers were posted by UMA 2.0 and Consent Receipt as well, since these tools help with GDPR compliance. With enforcement just over 3 months away, organizations the world over that have digital relationships with EU citizens are looking for products and services to help them meet the deadline. February has been a great month for new memberships too, and we have pleasure in welcoming DataFund from Denmark, Reliable Identities from the US and Sphere Identity from New Zealand.
We started the first full week in the month at the TIIME workshop in Vienna. This event really helps Kantara value its engagement with the Higher Ed community. I believe that Kantara is the only non-profit in the digital identity space to sustain a relationship that results in such fantastic knowledge-sharing. The value of this knowledge sharing is how it draws others to Kantara who are eager to both soak up and extend those riches. That aside, for many attendees the highlight was the workshop dinner held under the dome in the renowned Natural History Museum in Vienna. Unforgettable grandeur and splendour. Later in the month, EEMA - Kantara's most active European liaison - hosted me in Brussels at its members Fireside, on a topic close to us all - the future of identity and trust. Three speakers graced us with their perspectives. The stand-out presenter for me being Bart Preneel from Leuven University. His presentation was based on a thought provoking premise that, in the future, security and privacy will turn full circle to be better maintained and assured on local devices rather than cloud based networked services.
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Program, Work Group and Discussion Group Updates:
Consent Management Systems best practice WG has a fantastic turnout for its opening calls. Thank you sponsors iWelcome and digi.me. The Kantara community salutes you for your support.
You can always keep up with the latest news from the Work Group and Discussion Groups directly off the Leadership Council's Blog.
- Join them here
- Consent Receipt v1.1 is being prepared for publication just in time for those last minute preparations for GDPR!
As always our Specifications, Recommendations and Reports are available for download from our Reports and Recommendations web repository.
Not sure where to find things? Staff are only too willing to assist. Contact them via email.
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