DUOS Blog

We’re excited to share a new paper by Jonathan Lawson and Tom Conner, “GA4GH Data Passports: Proposing a New Technical Specification for Data Policy Representation,” now available on SSRN. This work introduces a proposed technical specification for Data Passports, a framework designed to streamline data use while upholding ethical provenance. By encoding these metadata as standardized, machine-readable “visas,” Data Passports enable faster, more secure, and interoperable access to research datasets.

Designed as a companion to the existing GA4GH Passports standard, this proposal outlines how institutions and data access committees can issue trusted assertions about a dataset. This approach reduces administrative burden and supports scalable, federated data governance. The paper also highlights future directions, including trust frameworks and expanded visa types, to further advance responsible and efficient data sharing.