IETF | Internet Engineering Task Force

IETF 119 Brisbane registration is open

Registration for IETF 119 Brisbane is now open. Join more than 1000 leading technologists in 100s of sessions, including the IETF Hackathon, from 16-22 March 2024.

Learn more and register today

Upcoming events

IETF 119 Brisbane
IETF 119 starts Saturday 16 March and runs through Friday afternoon, 22 March.
IETF 120 Vancouver
IETF 120 starts Saturday 20 July and runs through Friday afternoon, 26 July.

All events

What's new?

Launch of the IETF Community Survey 2023
The 2023 IETF Community Survey is live and we want to hear from you! Please respond by 22 January 2024.
22 Dec 2023
Final response to meeting venue consultations
The IETF Administration LLC recently sought feedback from the community on the possibility of holding an IETF Meeting in the cities of Beijing, Istanbul, Kuala Lumpur, and Shenzhen. The feedback received included views that were well expressed and well argued but were strongly conflicting. The IETF LLC considered this feedback in-depth and sought feedback on a proposed response. This post sets out the IETF LLC position on this consultation and the next steps for these potential venues.
19 Dec 2023

All news

Search the IETF email archive

Much of the daily work of the IETF is conducted on electronic mailing lists. A new mail archive tool realizing the requirements developed in RFC 6778 is now in use:

Search IETF Datatracker

The IETF Datatracker contains data about IETF documents, working groups, meetings, agendas, minutes, presentations, and more:

Understanding the Internet Engineering Task Force

Working Groups

Working Groups are the primary mechanism for development of IETF specifications and guidelines. Working Groups are typically created to address a specific problem or to produce one or more specific deliverables (a guideline, standards specification, etc.).

See how IETF Working Groups operate

Featured Working Group

Messaging Layer Security

Messaging Layer Security provides end-to-end security that makes it easy for apps to provide users the highest level of security, keeping user information safe even if the cloud service they’re using…

mls mls@ietf.org

Request for Comments (RFCs)

The IETF publishes RFCs authored by network operators, engineers, and computer scientists to document methods, behaviors, research, or innovations applicable to the Internet.

Learn more about RFCs

Featured RFC

The Messaging Layer Security (MLS) Protocol

The Messaging Layer Security (MLS) protocol specifies a key establishment protocol that provides efficient asynchronous group key establishment with forward secrecy (FS) and post-compromise security …

RFC 9420was: https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/rfc9420/

Topics of interest

Automated network management
The IETF is working on standards for automated network management which, as the name implies, aims to improve and make more efficient management of networks as they continue to increase in size and complexity.
The Internet of Things
The Internet of Things (IoT) is the network of physical objects or "things" embedded with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and connectivity to enable objects to exchange data with the manufacturer, operator, and/or other connected devices.
New transport technology
The development of new transport technologies in the IETF provides capabilities that improve the ability of Internet applications to send data over the Internet.