International standards

Worldwide access, European principles

Our vision for shaping the future data economy requires international standards for data spaces. Such standards are crucial for enabling sovereign and trustworthy data sharing, as demanded by European stakeholders, and are essential for ensuring interoperability across the global landscape.

Standardization – the key to interoperability

Data spaces can scale only when they rely on stable, widely accepted standards. International standards ensure interoperability, reduce technical barriers, and give organizations the confidence that their investments will remain future‑proof. They create the conditions for sovereign, secure, and trustworthy data sharing across industries and regions. Without standardization, data spaces risk fragmentation, higher costs, and limited adoption.

By aligning with globally recognized frameworks, organizations can:

Secure long‑term ROI through interoperable solutions
Lower integration and compliance costs
Meet regulatory expectations such as the EU Data Act and Data Governance Act
Accelerate adoption through shared practices and open‑source implementations

IDSA’s role in shaping interntional standards

The International Data Spaces Association (IDSA) provides a comprehensive soft infrastructure that defines the fundamental characteristics of data spaces: the IDS Reference Architecture Model (IDS‑RAM), the IDSA Rulebook, and the Dataspace Protocol (DSP). These resources ensure technical, semantic, organizational, and legal interoperability.

IDSA leads a consensus‑driven, globally connected community that co‑creates the standards enabling trustworthy data sharing. Through strategic collaboration with ISO, CEN/CENELEC, W3C, the European Commission, and the Eclipse Dataspace Working Group, IDSA actively contributes to the development and harmonization of international standards for data spaces.

IDSA engagement in European and International Standardization bodies

ISO/IEC 20151 – Concepts and characteristics of data spaces

ISO/IEC 20151 builds on the IDSA Rulebook and defines essential characteristics of data spaces. Developed in ISO/IEC JTC 1 / SC 38, it is advancing towards the Draft International Standard (DIS) stage.

Dataspace Protocol (DSP) – PAS submission to ISO

The Dataspace Protocol defines how participants communicate securely and interoperably. Maintained by the Eclipse Dataspace Working Group, the DSP, its TCK, and compatible implementation are being prepared for ISO PAS submission.

W3C – Semantic interoperability

Together with W3C, IDSA addresses semantic interoperability challenges and co‑organizes workshops to advance consistent, machine‑interpretable data exchange across domains.

European Commission – Data Act & DGA standardization

CEN/CENELEC is developing standards to support the Data Act and the Data Governance Act, ensuring compliant, secure, and sovereign data sharing in the EU. This includes:

CWA 18125:2024 – Trusted Data Transactions: A pre‑standardization agreement defining secure, architecture‑independent data transaction principles.

JTC 25 WG2 & WG3

WG2 works on trusted data transactions and harmonization within European data spaces
WG3 focuses on data management, ontologies, and quality frameworks.