View source for Vint Cerf

{{short description|American computer scientist and Internet pioneer (born 1943)}}
{{Use American English|date=April 2026}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name              = Vint Cerf
| honorific_suffix  = {{postnominals|country=GBR|size=100%|ForMemRS}}
| image             = Dr Vint Cerf ForMemRS (cropped).jpg
| caption           = Cerf in 2016
| birth_name        = Vinton Gray Cerf
| birth_date        = {{birth date and age|1943|06|23}}
| birth_place       = [[New Haven, Connecticut]], U.S.
| workplaces        = [[IBM]],<ref name="vita">[http://www.icann.org/correspondence/cerf-testimony-08feb01.htm#Vita Cerf's ''curriculum vitae'' as of February 2001], attached to a transcript of his testimony that month before the [[United States House Energy Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet]], from [[ICANN]]'s website</ref> [[International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad]],<ref name = "vita"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iiit.ac.in/about/governing-council/|title=Governing Council - IIIT Hyderabad|website=www.iiit.ac.in|date=August 20, 2022 }}</ref> [[University of California, Los Angeles|UCLA]],<ref name="vita"/> [[Stanford University]],<ref name="vita"/> [[DARPA]],<ref name="vita"/> [[MCI Inc.|MCI]],<ref name="vita"/><ref name="washpost">[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/campaigns/wh2000/stories/gore032199.htm Gore Deserves Internet Credit, Some Say], a March 1999 ''[[Washington Post]]'' article</ref> [[Corporation for National Research Initiatives|CNRI]],<ref name="vita"/> [[Google]]<ref name="google">[http://www.google.com/press/pressrel/vintcerf.html Cerf's up at Google], from the [[Google]] Press Center</ref>
| education         = [[Stanford University]] ([[Bachelor of Science|BS]])<br>[[University of California, Los Angeles]] ([[Master of Science|MS]], [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]])
| thesis_title      = Multiprocessors, Semaphores, and a Graph Model of Computation
| thesis_url        = https://www.proquest.com/docview/302671529/
| thesis_year       = 1972
| doctoral_advisor  = [[Gerald Estrin]]<ref name="cerfphd">{{cite thesis |degree=PhD |first=Vinton|last=Cerf |title=Multiprocessors, Semaphores, and a Graph Model of Computation |publisher=University of California, Los Angeles |date=1972 |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/302671529|author-link=Vint Cerf|oclc=4433713032 |id={{ProQuest|302671529}} }}</ref>
| known_for         = [[TCP/IP]]<br>[[Internet Society]]
| field             = [[Telecommunications]]
| prizes            = {{Plainlist|
* [[ACM Fellow]] <small>(1994)</small>
* [[IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal]] <small>(1997)</small>
* [[IEEE Medal of Honor]] <small>(2023)</small>
* [[National Medal of Technology]] <small>(1997)</small>
* [[Marconi Prize]] {{small|(1998)}}
* [[Prince of Asturias Award]] <small>(2002)</small>
* [[Turing Award]] <small>(2004)</small>
* [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] <small>(2005)</small>
* [[Japan Prize]] <small>(2008)</small>
* [[Harold Pender Award]] <small>(2010)</small>
* [[Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering]] <small>(2013)</small>
* [[Fellow of the Royal Society|ForMemRS]] <small>(2016)</small><ref name=frs>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160429121111/https://royalsociety.org/people/vint-cerf-12851/|archive-date=April 29, 2016|url=https://royalsociety.org/people/vint-cerf-12851/|publisher=[[Royal Society]]|location=London|title=Dr Vint Cerf ForMemRS|author=Anon|year=2016}} One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from the royalsociety.org website where: {{blockquote|“All text published under the heading 'Biography' on Fellow profile pages is available under [[Creative Commons license|Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License]].” --{{cite web |url=https://royalsociety.org/about-us/terms-conditions-policies/ |title=Royal Society Terms, conditions and policies |access-date=2016-03-09 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925220834/https://royalsociety.org/about-us/terms-conditions-policies/ |archive-date=September 25, 2015}}}}</ref>}}
| signature         = Signature of Vint Cerf.png
}}

'''Vinton Gray Cerf''' ({{IPAc-en|s|ɜːr|f}}; born June 23, 1943) is an American [[Internet pioneer]] and is recognized as one of "the fathers of the Internet", sharing this title with [[TCP/IP]] co-developer [[Robert Kahn (computer scientist)|Robert Kahn]].<ref name="vita" /><ref>(see [http://www.gcn.com/print/25_2/38005-1.html?topic=interview Interview with Vinton Cerf] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070609092123/http://www.gcn.com/print/25_2/38005-1.html?topic=interview |date=June 9, 2007 }}, from a January 2006 article in ''Government Computer News''), Cerf is willing to call himself one of the internet fathers, citing [[Robert Kahn (computer scientist)|Robert Kahn]] and [[Leonard Kleinrock]] in particular as being others with whom he should share that title.</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Cerf|first1=V. G.|title=The day the Internet age began|doi=10.1038/4611202a|journal=Nature|volume=461|issue=7268|pages=1202–1203|date=2009|pmid=19865146|bibcode=2009Natur.461.1202C|s2cid=205049153}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://awards.acm.org/homepage.cfm?srt=all&awd=140 |title=ACM Turing Award, list of recipients|publisher=Awards.acm.org|access-date=December 2, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091212132624/http://awards.acm.org/homepage.cfm?srt=all&awd=140 |archive-date=December 12, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ieee.org/about/awards/medals/bell.html#sect3 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100406225653/http://www.ieee.org/about/awards/medals/bell.html#sect3 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 6, 2010 |title=IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal |publisher=Ieee.org |date=July 7, 2009 |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref>

He has received honorary degrees and awards that include the [[National Medal of Technology]],<ref name="vita"/> the [[Turing Award]],<ref name="turing">[https://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/16/technology/16internet.html?oref=login Cerf wins Turing Award] February 16, 2005</ref> the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]],<ref name="whitehouse">[https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/11/20051109-10.html 2005 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients] from the White House website</ref> the [[Marconi Prize]], and membership in the [[National Academy of Engineering]].

== Life and career ==
[[File:Vint Cerf - 2010.jpg|thumb|left|Vinton Cerf in [[Vilnius]], September 2010]]

Vinton Gray Cerf was born in [[New Haven, Connecticut]], on June 23, 1943, the son of Muriel (née Gray) and Vinton Thruston Cerf.<ref>{{cite web |last=Jerome |first=Richard |url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20132347,00.html |title=Lending An Ear&nbsp;– Health, Real People Stories |work=People |date=September 18, 2000 |access-date=December 2, 2011 |archive-date=June 19, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130619050855/http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20132347,00.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.bookrags.com/biography/vinton-gray-cerf-wcs/2.html |title=Vinton Gray Cerf Biography |publisher=BookRags.com |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref> His mother was born in Canada and was of [[British people|British]], [[Irish people|Irish]], and [[French Canadians|French Canadian]] descent.<ref>{{Cite interview |last=Cerf |first=Vinton G. |interviewer=Suzanne Butler Gwiazda |title=Vinton G. Cerf : An Oral History |url=https://purl.stanford.edu/pj259nj7501 |work=Stanford Oral History Collections |date=February 4–5, 2019 |pages=18-20}}</ref> His paternal ancestors emigrated from [[Alsace–Lorraine]] to [[Kentucky]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cerf |first=Vinton G. |date=2017-04-01 |title=A Genetic Theory of the Silicon Valley Phenomenon |url=https://cacm.acm.org/opinion/a-genetic-theory-of-the-silicon-valley-phenomenon/ |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=Communications of the ACM |language=en-US}}</ref> Cerf attended [[Van Nuys High School]] with [[Steve Crocker]] and [[Jon Postel]]. While in high school, Cerf worked at [[Rocketdyne]] on the [[Apollo program]] for six months and helped write statistical analysis software for the non-destructive tests of the [[Rocketdyne F-1|F-1 engines]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Wientjes|first1=Greg|title=Creative Genius in Technology: Mentor Principles from Life Stories of Geniuses and Visionaries of the Singularity|date=2011|isbn=978-1463727505|page=93|publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Vint Cerf Helped Create the Internet on the Back of an Envelope |last=Bobrow |first=Emily |date=December 16, 2022 |access-date=December 26, 2022 |website=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/vint-cerf-helped-create-the-internet-on-the-back-of-an-envelope-11671210858}}</ref>

Cerf received a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics from [[Stanford University]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.stanford.edu/news/2014/january/vint-cerf-lecture-011414.html|title=Former Stanford professor and Internet inventor eyes safety in wired-up world|last=Parker|first=Clifton B.|date=2014-01-14|website=Stanford University|language=en|access-date=2020-04-27|archive-date=November 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191125022829/https://news.stanford.edu/news/2014/january/vint-cerf-lecture-011414.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> After college, Cerf worked at [[IBM]] as a [[systems engineer]] supporting [[QUIKTRAN]] for two years.<ref name="vita" />

Cerf and his wife Sigrid both have hearing deficiencies; they met at a [[hearing aid]] agent's practice in the 1960s,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.littlemag.com/listen/vintoncerf2.html|title=The Little Magazine - Listen - Vinton Cerf - The little deaf girl|website=www.littlemag.com|access-date=October 9, 2019|archive-date=2023-04-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409102115/http://www.littlemag.com/listen/vintoncerf2.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> leading him to advocate for [[accessibility]]. They had two sons, David and Bennett.<ref>{{cite news|last=Mintz |first=Anita |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/food/1982/12/26/the-miracle-of-the-loaves/dbb2244f-f3df-4dcc-ac87-4a18f6645291/ |title=The Miracle of the Loaves |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=1982-12-26 |accessdate=2022-05-26}}</ref>

He left IBM to attend graduate school at the [[University of California, Los Angeles]], where he earned his M.S. degree in 1970 and his PhD in 1972.<ref name="cerfphd" /><ref name="UCLAEngineering2005">{{cite web|url=http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/magazine/Spring05/turing.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060305044349/http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/magazine/Spring05/turing.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 5, 2006|title=UCLA School of Engineering Alumnus Chosen for Prestigious Turing Award|publisher=[[UCLA]] Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science|date=Spring 2005}}</ref> Cerf studied under Professor [[Gerald Estrin]] and worked in Professor [[Leonard Kleinrock]]'s [[data packet]] networking group that connected the first two nodes of the [[ARPANET]],<ref name="CNN1999_09_02">{{cite news |date=September 2, 1999 |title=Internet predecessor turns 30 |url=http://www.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9909/02/internet.anniv/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080608064303/http://www.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9909/02/internet.anniv/ |archive-date=June 8, 2008 |publisher=CNN |access-date=March 9, 2012 }}</ref> the first node<ref name="CNN1999_09_02" /> on the Internet, and "contributed to a host-to-host protocol" for the ARPANET.<ref name="ACM2005_02_16" />

While at [[UCLA]], Cerf met [[Bob Kahn]], who was working on the ARPANET system architecture.<ref name="ACM2005_02_16">{{cite web|url=http://amturing.acm.org/award_winners/cerf_1083211.cfm|publisher=[[Association for Computing Machinery|ACM]]|date=February 16, 2005|title=INTERNET PIONEERS CERF AND KAHN TO RECEIVE ACM TURING AWARD}}</ref> Cerf chaired the [[International Network Working Group]]. He wrote the first [[TCP/IP|TCP]] with [[Yogen K Dalal|Yogen Dalal]] and [[Carl Sunshine]], called ''Specification of Internet Transmission Control Program'' ({{IETF RFC|675}}), published in December 1974.<ref>Vinton Cerf, Yogen Dalal, Carl Sunshine, ''Specification of Internet Transmission Control Program'' ({{IETF RFC|675}}, December 1974)</ref>

Cerf worked as [[Professor#Assistant professor|assistant professor]] at Stanford University from 1972 to 1976 where he conducted research on packet network interconnection protocols and co-designed the DoD TCP/IP protocol suite with Kahn.<ref name="ACM2005_02_16" />

[[File:Vinton Cerf-20070512.jpg|thumb|left|Cerf playing ''[[Spacewar (video game)|Spacewar!]]'' on the [[Computer History Museum]]'s [[PDP-1]], [[ICANN]] meeting, 2007]]

From 1973 to 1982, Cerf worked at the United States [[DARPA|Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency]] (DARPA) and funded various groups to develop TCP/IP, packet radio ([[PRNET]]), packet satellite ([[SATNET]]) and packet security technology.<ref>{{cite web|last=Cerf|first=Vinton G.|date=1990-04-24|title=Oral history interview with Vinton G. Cerf|url=https://conservancy.umn.edu/bitstream/handle/11299/107214/oh191vgc.pdf|access-date=2020-06-04|website=University of Minnesota Digital Conservancy|publisher=Charles Babbage Institute|location=Minnesota, Minneapolis|page=24|quote=My first introduction to somebody at DARPA other than Bob Kahn and Steve Crocker was Craig. So it was fairly early on, I think by 1973, I was under contract to carry out the INTERNET research work.}}</ref> These efforts were rooted in the needs of the military.<ref>{{cite web|last=Cerf|first=Vinton G.|date=1990-04-24|title=Oral history interview with Vinton G. Cerf|url=https://conservancy.umn.edu/bitstream/handle/11299/107214/oh191vgc.pdf|access-date=2020-06-04|website=University of Minnesota Digital Conservancy|publisher=Charles Babbage Institute|location=Minnesota, Minneapolis|page=28|quote=we absolutely wanted to bring data communications to the field, which is what the packet radio project and the packet satellite projects were about [...]. So the whole effort was very strongly motivated by bringing computers into the field in the military and then making it possible for them to communicate with each other in the field and to assets that were in the rear of the theatre of operations. So all of the demonstrations that we did had military counterparts.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Vint|first=Cerf|date=2017-06-27|title=Vint Cerf: The past, present and future of the internet|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yd-dUqecao8&t=109 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/Yd-dUqecao8| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|access-date=2020-06-04|website=Youtube|publisher=National Institute of Standards and Technology}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Lukasik|first=Stephen J.|author-link=Stephen J. Lukasik|date=1972-02-16|title=Department of Defense Appropriations for Fiscal Year 1973: Hearings Before a Subcommittee of the Committee On Appropriations, United States Senate, Ninety-second Congress, Second Session, On H. R. [16593] pt.1|url=https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/007865753|access-date=2020-06-04|via=HathiTrust Digital Library|publisher=University of California|location=Washington|page=775 ff|quote=the tools and techniques to be developed will be available on systems of the ARPA network and therefore will be immediately accessible by the services [...]. [...] making excellent progress toward our objective of developing the capability to have computers consider large quantities of complex, real world information and form generalizations and plans based on the totality of information [...]. Progress in these areas is important for the intelligence agencies, especially in intelligence analysis and question-answering systems.}}</ref> In the late 1980s, Cerf moved to [[MCI Communications|MCI]] where he helped develop the first commercial email system ([[MCI Mail]]) to be connected to the Internet, in 1989.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=Meet Mr. Internet: Vint Cerf - IEEE Spectrum |url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/vint-cerf |access-date=2023-05-03 |website=[[IEEE]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Cerf|first=Vinton G.|date=1990-04-24|title=Oral history interview with Vinton G. Cerf|url=https://conservancy.umn.edu/bitstream/handle/11299/107214/oh191vgc.pdf|access-date=2020-06-04|website=University of Minnesota Digital Conservancy|publisher=Charles Babbage Institute|location=Minnesota, Minneapolis|page=30|quote=This was a challenge that would use all my DARPA-acquired skills and know-how. What emerged was MCI Mail.}}</ref>

Cerf is active in a number of global humanitarian organizations.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Lennon|first=Conor|date=2019-06-10|title=Internet pioneer: Education, smart regulation needed for digital future|work=UN News|publisher=United Nations|url=https://news.un.org/en/audio/2019/06/1040191|access-date=2020-06-04|quote=member of the UN High Level Panel on Digital Cooperation|archive-date=June 5, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200605112129/https://news.un.org/en/audio/2019/06/1040191|url-status=dead}}</ref> Cerf typically appears in a [[three-piece suit]], a rarity in an industry known for its casual dress norms.<ref>[http://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/Internet-pioneer-Vint-Cerf-looks-to-the-future-1244478.php "Internet pioneer Vint Cerf looks to the future"], Todd Bishop, ''Seattle P-I'', July 23, 2007. Retrieved September 27, 2013.</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-31450389|title=Google's Vint Cerf warns of 'digital Dark Age'|last1=Ghosh|first1=Pallab |work=[[BBC News]]|date=February 13, 2015|access-date=February 13, 2015}}</ref>

As vice president of MCI Digital Information Services from 1982 to 1986, Cerf led the engineering of [[MCI Mail]], which became the first commercial email service to be connected to the Internet in 1989.<ref name=":6"/><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020 |title=Vinton G. Cerf : An Oral History |url=https://exhibits.stanford.edu/oral-history/catalog/pj259nj7501 |access-date=2024-06-29 |website=Stanford Oral History Collections - Spotlight at Stanford |page=119 |language=en}}</ref> In 1986, he joined Bob Kahn at the [[Corporation for National Research Initiatives]] as its vice president, working with Kahn on [[Digital library|Digital Libraries]], Knowledge Robots, and gigabit speed networks. Since 1988 Cerf lobbied for the privatization of the internet.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Cerf|first=Vinton G.|title=Digital Democracy: Past, Present, Future|journal=Digital Government: Research and Practice|publisher=Association for Computing Machinery|date=2020| issue=1| doi=10.1145/3382738 |pages=1–10|s2cid=211519549|quote=I pushed for privatization as early as 1988, just five years after turning the Internet on, on the grounds that I believed that, in order to reach the general public, we needed to have an economic engine that would drive it, sustain it, make it survivable or sustainable.|doi-access=free}}</ref> In 1992, he and Kahn, among others, founded the [[Internet Society]] (ISOC) to provide leadership in education, policy and standards related to the Internet. Cerf served as the first president of ISOC. Cerf rejoined MCI in 1994 and served as Senior Vice President of Technology Strategy. In this role, he helped to guide corporate strategy development from a technical perspective. Previously, he served as MCI's senior vice president of Architecture and Technology, leading a team of architects and engineers to design advanced networking frameworks, including Internet-based solutions for delivering a combination of data, information, voice and video services for business and consumer use.

During 1997, Cerf joined the board of trustees of [[Gallaudet University]], a university for the education of the deaf and hard-of-hearing.<ref>[http://news.gallaudet.edu/newsreleases/index.asp?ID=2898 Dr. Vinton G. Cerf Appointed to Gallaudet University's Board of Trustees] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090823035148/http://news.gallaudet.edu/newsreleases/index.asp?ID=2898 |date=August 23, 2009 }}, from that university's website</ref> Cerf himself is hard of hearing.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://deafness.about.com/cs/celebfeatures/a/vintoncerf.htm |title=Vinton Cerf&nbsp;– Father of the Internet, Vinton Cerf |publisher=Deafness.about.com |date=August 28, 2010 |access-date=December 2, 2011 |archive-date=November 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104212006/http://deafness.about.com/cs/celebfeatures/a/vintoncerf.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>  He has also served on the university's Board of Associates.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.gallaudet.edu/development_and_alumni_relations/board_of_associates.html| title=Board of Associates| publisher=Gallaudet University| access-date=April 3, 2014| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407085522/https://www.gallaudet.edu/development_and_alumni_relations/board_of_associates.html| archive-date=April 7, 2014| df=mdy-all}}</ref>

Cerf, as leader of MCI's internet business, was criticized due to MCI's role in providing the IP addresses used by Send-Safe.com, a vendor of spamware that uses a [[botnet]] in order to send spam. MCI refused to terminate the spamware vendor.<ref name="spamcomplaintdraft">{{cite newsgroup |title=Re: ACM ethics complaint against Cerf – first draft |author=Socks the Whitehouse Cat |date=February 19, 2005 |newsgroup=comp.org.acm |url=https://groups.google.com/forum/#!msg/comp.org.acm/aHUVtwgWzus/tk2tZQXqwesJ |access-date=June 9, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://oreilly.com/spamkings/archives/2005/02/protest_brewing.html |title=Protest brewing against Internet pioneer |last=McWilliams |first=Brian |date=February 16, 2005 |website=Spam Kings Blog |access-date=June 9, 2014}}</ref> At the time, [[The Spamhaus Project|Spamhaus]] also listed MCI as the ISP with the most Spamhaus Block List listings.<ref>{{cite newsgroup |title=ACM ethics complaint against Cerf – first draft |author=Socks the Whitehouse Cat |date=February 25, 2005 |newsgroup=comp.org.acm |url=https://groups.google.com/forum/#!msg/comp.org.acm/aHUVtwgWzus/tk2tZQXqwesJ |access-date=June 9, 2014}}</ref>

Cerf has worked for [[Google]] as a vice president and Chief [[Technology evangelist|Internet Evangelist]] since October 2005.<ref name="google"/> In this function he has become well known for his predictions on how technology will affect future society, encompassing such areas as [[artificial intelligence]], environmentalism, the advent of [[IPv6]] and the transformation of the television industry and its delivery model.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070910222208/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/connected/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fconnected%2F2007%2F09%2F08%2Fdlbroad08.xml The Daily Telegraph], August 2007</ref>

Cerf has served as a commissioner for the [[Broadband Commission for Digital Development]], a UN body which aims to make broadband internet technologies more widely available<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 September 2010 |title=A 2010 Leadership Imperative: The Future Built on Broadband |url=https://www.broadbandcommission.org/Documents/publications/Report_1.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901054317/https://www.broadbandcommission.org/Documents/publications/Report_1.pdf |archive-date=1 September 2022 |access-date=2023-02-10 |website=Broadband Commission}}</ref>

Cerf helped fund and establish [[ICANN]], the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.  He joined the board in 1999 and served until November 2007.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.icann.org/biog/cerf.htm |title=ICANN Board of Directors&nbsp;– Vinton G. Cerf |publisher=Icann.org |date=February 14, 2011 |access-date=December 2, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070630131029/http://www.icann.org/biog/cerf.htm |archive-date=June 30, 2007 }}</ref> He was chairman from November 2000 to his departure from the board.

Cerf was a member of Bulgarian President [[Georgi Parvanov]]'s IT Advisory Council (from March 2002 to January 2012). He is also a member of the advisory board of [[Eurasia Group]], the political risk consultancy.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eurasiagroup.net/advisory-board |title=Eurasia Group |publisher=Eurasia Group |access-date=December 2, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928012248/http://www.eurasiagroup.net/advisory-board |archive-date=September 28, 2011  }}</ref>

Cerf is also working on the [[Interplanetary Internet]], together with [[NASA]]'s [[Jet Propulsion Laboratory]] and other NASA laboratories. It will be a new standard to communicate from planet to planet, using radio/laser communications that are tolerant of signal degradations including variable delay and disruption caused, for example, by celestial motion.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ipnsig.org/ |title=The InterPlaNetary Internet Project IPN Special Interest Group |publisher=Ipnsig.org |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref>

On February 7, 2006, Cerf testified before the [[U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce|U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation]]'s hearing on [[network neutrality|net neutrality]]. Speaking as Google's Chief Internet Evangelist, Cerf noted that nearly half of all US consumers lacked meaningful choice in broadband providers and expressed concerns that without network neutrality government regulation, broadband providers would be able to use their dominance to limit options for consumers and charge companies like Google for their use of bandwidth.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://commerce.senate.gov/pdf/cerf-020706.pdf |title=Testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce |access-date=December 2, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121217133220/http://commerce.senate.gov/pdf/cerf-020706.pdf |archive-date=December 17, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[Image:VintCerfJI3.jpg|left|thumb|Cerf at 2007 Los Angeles ICANN meeting]]

Cerf currently serves on the board of advisors of [[Scientists and Engineers for America]], an organization focused on promoting sound science in American government.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110721002340/http://www.sefora.org/about/board-of-advisors/ SEA's Board of Advisors]. sefora.org</ref> He also serves on the advisory council of [[CRDF Global]] (Civilian Research and Development Foundation) and was on the International Multilateral Partnership Against Cyber Threats (IMPACT) International Advisory Board.<ref>[http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/security/0,39044215,62058564,00.htm "Govt red tape adds to security threats"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091221091938/http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/security/0,39044215,62058564,00.htm |date=December 21, 2009 }}, Vivian Yeo, ZDNet, October 12, 2009</ref>

Cerf was elected as the president of the [[Association for Computing Machinery]] in May 2012<ref name="ACM">[http://www.acm.org/press-room/news-releases/2012/acm-officers-2012 ACM Elects Vint Cerf as President] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120526231209/http://www.acm.org/press-room/news-releases/2012/acm-officers-2012|date=May 26, 2012}} from the ACM website</ref> and joined the Council on CyberSecurity's Board of Advisors in August 2013.<ref>[http://www.counciloncybersecurity.org/about-us/advisory-board "Advisory Board"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130917021956/http://www.counciloncybersecurity.org/about-us/advisory-board|date=September 17, 2013}}, Council on CyberSecurity website. Retrieved September 27, 2013.</ref>

From 2011 to 2016, Cerf was chairman of the board of trustees of [[ARIN]], the Regional Internet Registry (RIR) of IP addresses for the United States, Canada, and part of the Caribbean.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.arin.net/about_us/media/releases/20101022.html |title=ARIN Announces Newly Elected Board of Trustees |publisher=Arin.net |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref> Until Fall 2015, Cerf chaired the board of directors of [[StopBadware]], a non-profit anti-malware organization that started as a project at Harvard University's [[Berkman Center for Internet & Society]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.stopbadware.org/board |title=Board of Directors |publisher=StopBadware |access-date=January 19, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117031129/http://www.stopbadware.org/board |archive-date=January 17, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://stopbadware.org/home/pr_012306 |title=Harvard's Berkman Center and the Oxford Internet Institute Unveil StopBadware.org Backed by Google, Lenovo, Sun; Consumer Reports WebWatch Takes Unpaid Special Advisor Role |publisher=StopBadware |date=January 23, 2006 |access-date=December 2, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929105703/http://stopbadware.org/home/pr_012306 |archive-date=September 29, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Cerf is on the board of advisors to The Liquid Information Company Ltd of the UK, which works to make the web more usefully interactive and which has produced the Mac OS X utility called 'Liquid'.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.liquid.info/company.html |title=The Liquid Information Company |publisher=Liquid.info |access-date=July 1, 2013}}</ref> Vint Cerf is a member of the [[CuriosityStream]] Advisory Board.<ref>{{cite web|title=CuriosityStream Advisory Board|url=https://curiositystream.com/board|access-date=August 31, 2015}}</ref>

During 2008, Cerf chaired the [[Internationalized domain name]] (IDNAbis) working group of the [[IETF]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://tools.ietf.org/wg/idnabis |title=IDNAbis WG |publisher=Tools.ietf.org |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref> In 2008 Cerf was a major contender to be designated the first U.S. [[Chief Technology Officer of the United States|Chief Technology Officer]] by President [[Barack Obama]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/story/2008/12/the-5-best-jobs-obama-has-yet-to-fill-016189 |title=The 5 best jobs Obama has yet to fill&nbsp;– Craig Gordon and Ben Smith |publisher=Politico.Com |date=December 4, 2008 |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref> Cerf is the co-chair of [[Campus Party|Campus Party Silicon Valley]], the US edition of one of the largest technology festivals in the world, along with [[Al Gore]] and [[Tim Berners-Lee]].<ref>{{cite news|author=Daniel Ben-Horin |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-benhorin/the-kids-are-alright-camp_b_1105795.html |title=The Kids Are Alright: Campus Party, Silicon Valley Tech Festival Rocks NASA  |work=Huffington Post |date=November 21, 2011 |access-date=March 6, 2013}}</ref>

From 2009 to 2011, Cerf was an elected member of the governing board of the [[Smart Grid Interoperability Panel]] (SGIP). SGIP is a public-private consortium established by NIST in 2009 and provides a forum for businesses and other stakeholder groups to participate in coordinating and accelerating development of standards for the evolving Smart Grid.<ref>{{cite journal| title=Smart Grid Interoperability Panel Launched; Governing Board Elected| journal=NIST| date=November 19, 2009| url=https://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/releases/smartgrid_111909.cfm| access-date=November 19, 2009}}</ref>

Cerf was elected to a two-year term as president of the [[Association for Computing Machinery]] (ACM) beginning July 1, 2012.<ref>{{cite web|title=ACM Elects Vint Cerf as President|url=http://www.acm.org/press-room/news-releases/2012/acm-officers-2012|publisher=ACM|access-date=May 25, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120526231209/http://www.acm.org/press-room/news-releases/2012/acm-officers-2012|archive-date=May 26, 2012}}</ref> On January 16, 2013, U.S. President [[Barack Obama]] announced his intent to appoint Cerf to the [[National Science Board]].<ref>{{cite web |date=January 16, 2013 |title=President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2013/01/16/president-obama-announces-more-key-administration-posts |access-date=January 20, 2013 |work=[[whitehouse.gov]] |via=[[NARA|National Archives]]}}</ref> Cerf served until May 2018 when his six-year term expired. In 2015 Cerf co-founded (with [[Mei Lin Fung]]) and until December 2019 chaired the People-Centered Internet (PCI).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nation.co.ke/oped/blogs/dot9/ndemo/2274486-2967680-format-xhtml-usx21b/index.html |title=Economies grow far better with inclusivity and compromise |publisher=DailyNation |date=November 23, 2015 |access-date=February 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.peoplecentered.net |title=Welcome to the People-Centered Internet |publisher=PCI |access-date=June 13, 2024}}</ref>

Cerf is also among the 15 members of governing council of [[International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Governing Council|url=https://www.iiit.ac.in/about/governing-council/|work=International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad|access-date=April 18, 2016}}</ref>

In June 2016, his work with NASA led to [[delay-tolerant networking]] being installed on the [[International Space Station]] with an aim towards an [[Interplanetary Internet]].<ref name="NASA">{{cite web|last1=Mahoney|first1=Erin|title=Space Internet Technology Debuts on the International Space Station|url=http://www.nasa.gov/feature/new-solar-system-internet-technology-debuts-on-the-international-space-station|date=June 21, 2016|access-date=June 27, 2016|archive-date=November 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108101336/https://www.nasa.gov/feature/new-solar-system-internet-technology-debuts-on-the-international-space-station/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Since at least 2015, Cerf has been raising concerns about the wide-ranging risks of [[digital obsolescence]], the potential of losing much historic information about our time – a [[Digital dark age|digital "Dark Age"]] or "black hole" – given the ubiquitous digital storage of text, data, images, music and more. Among the concerns are the long-term storage of, and continued reliable access to, our vast stores of present-day digital data and the associated programs, operating systems, computers and peripherals required to access such.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/feb/16/digital-black-hole-delete-memories-information-lost-google-vint-cerf|title=The digital black hole: will it delete your memories?|last=Dartnell|first=Lewis|date=February 16, 2015|website=the Guardian|language=en|access-date=November 11, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.computerworld.com/article/2883759/vint-cerf-fears-a-digital-dark-age-and-your-data-could-be-at-risk.html|title=Vint Cerf fears a 'digital dark age,' and your data could be at risk|last=Noyes|first=Katherine|work=Computerworld|access-date=November 11, 2018|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/02/13/386000092/internet-pioneer-warns-our-era-could-become-the-digital-dark-ages|title=Internet Pioneer Warns Our Era Could Become The 'Digital Dark Ages'|work=NPR.org|access-date=November 11, 2018|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-31450389|title=Net pioneer warns of data Dark Age|last=Ghosh|first=Pallab|date=February 13, 2015|work=BBC News|access-date=November 11, 2018|language=en-GB}}</ref>

Cerf has been a member of the Board of Governors of the [[Folger Shakespeare Library]] since 2015.<ref>{{cite web |title=Vinton G. Cerf |url=https://www.folger.edu/bio/vinton-cerf/ |website=Folger Shakespeare Library |access-date=10 June 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Board of Governors |url=https://www.folger.edu/about-us/board-of-governors/ |website=Folger Shakespeare Library |access-date=10 June 2025}}</ref>

== Awards and honors ==
[[Image:CerfKahnMedalOfFreedom.jpg|thumb|220px|Cerf and [[Bob Kahn|Bob E. Kahn]] being awarded the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] by President George W. Bush]]
[[Image:CerfParvanov.jpg|thumb|220px|Cerf and Bulgarian President Parvanov being awarded the St. Cyril and Methodius in the Coat of Arms Order]]

Cerf has received a number of honorary degrees, including doctorates, from the [[University of the Balearic Islands]], [[ETHZ]] in Zurich, Switzerland, [[Capitol College]], [[Gettysburg College]], [[Yale University]],<ref>{{cite news|date=2013-05-20|title=Yale awards 10 honorary degrees at 2013 Commencement|url=https://news.yale.edu/2013/05/20/yale-awards-10-honorary-degrees-2013-commencement|access-date=2020-07-01|website=YaleNews|language=en}}</ref> [[George Mason University]], [[Marymount University]], Bethany College (Kansas), [[University of Pisa]], [[University of Rovira and Virgili]] ([[Tarragona]], Spain), [[Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute]],<ref>{{cite web|title=Cosby Urges Rensselaer Graduates: Be Honest, Be Humble {{!}} News & Events|url=https://news.rpi.edu/luwakkey/459|access-date=2020-07-01|website=Rensselaer News}}</ref> [[Luleå University of Technology]] ([[Sweden]]), [[University of Twente]] ([[Netherlands]]), [[Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications]], [[Tsinghua University]] (Beijing), [[Polytechnic University (New York)|Brooklyn Polytechnic]], UPCT (University of Cartagena, Spain), Zaragoza University (Spain), [[University of Reading]] (United Kingdom), [[Royal Roads University]] (Canada), MGIMO (Moscow State University of International Relations), Buenos Aires Institute of Technology (Argentina),  [[Polytechnic University of Madrid]], [[Keio University]] (Japan), [[University of South Australia]] (Australia), [[University of St Andrews]] (Scotland), [[University of Pittsburgh]] and<ref>{{cite web|date=24 June 2015|title=Laureation address: Dr Vinton Cerf|url=https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/news/archive/2015/title,261363,en.php|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626122422/https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/news/archive/2015/title,261363,en.php|archive-date=June 26, 2015}}</ref> [[Gallaudet University]] (United States). Other awards include:

*Edward A. Dickson Alumnus of the Year Award from UCLA<ref>{{cite web|url=http://alumni.ucla.edu/share/ucla-awards/bio/vinton-cerf.aspx |title=Vinton Cerf M.S. '70, PhD '72 &#124; UCLA Alumni |publisher=Alumni.ucla.edu |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref>
*[[Prince of Asturias Awards|Prince of Asturias award]] for science and technology<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2018/12/31/lawrence-roberts-who-helped-design-internet-s.html#i/11177294|title=Lawrence Roberts, who helped design Internet's precursor, dies at 81|last=Hafner|first=Katie|date=31 December 2018|website=San Francisco Business Times}}</ref>
*[[Fellow of the IEEE|Life Member IEEE]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pcmag.com/news/sxsw-vint-cerf-on-connecting-the-next-billion-people|title=SXSW: Vint Cerf on Connecting the Next Billion People|last=Costa|first=Dan|date=11 March 2017|website=PC Mag}}</ref>
*Fellow of the [[IEEE]] for contribution and leadership in the design, development, and application of internet protocols.<ref>
{{Cite web|
url=https://www.comsoc.org/membership/ieee-fellows/1988|
title = IEEE Fellows 1988 &#124; IEEE Communications Society}}
</ref>
*Fellow of the [[Association for Computing Machinery]], 1994<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.st-andrews.ac.uk/archive/laureation-address-dr-vinton-cerf/|title=Laureation address: Dr Vinton Cerf|date=24 June 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iotevolutionworld.com/iot/articles/430417-acm-iot-roundtable-internet-experts-luminaries-innovators.htm|title=ACM IoT Roundtable: Internet Experts, Luminaries and Innovators|last=Briodagh|first=Ken|date=15 March 2017|website=IoT Evolution}}</ref>
* Elected as a member into the [[National Academy of Engineering]] in 1995 for contributions to the design and development of network protocols and leadership in the evolution of the Internet.
*[[Yuri Rubinsky Memorial Award]], 1996<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/1999/05/award-from-an-unlikely-source/|title=Award from an Unlikely Source|date=18 May 1999|magazine=Wired|last=Kahney|first=Leander}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://elementy.ru/nauchno-populyarnaya_biblioteka/432541/Chernyy_lebed_interneta|title=Black swan of the internet|date=2 November 2014}}</ref>
*[[SIGCOMM Award]] for "contributions to the Internet [spanning] more than 25 years, from development of the fundamental TCP/IP protocols".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sigcomm.org/awards.html |title=SIGCOMM Awards |publisher=Sigcomm.org |access-date=December 2, 2011 |archive-date=June 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100621042330/http://www.sigcomm.org/awards.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
*[[The Franklin Institute Awards|Certificate of Merit]] from [[The Franklin Institute]], in 1996.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Official Biography: Vint Cerf |url=https://www.internethalloffame.org/vint-cerf/ |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=Internet Hall of Fame |language=en-US}}</ref>
*In December 1997 he, along with his partner Robert E. Kahn, was presented with the [[National Medal of Technology]] by President [[Bill Clinton]], "for creating and sustaining development of Internet Protocols and continuing to provide leadership in the emerging industry of internetworking."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ostp.gov/html/motmos.html |title=Office of Science and Technology Policy &#124; The White House |publisher=Ostp.gov |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://nationalmedals.org/|title=Home|website=National Science and Technology Medals Foundation}}</ref>
*Stibitz-Wilson Award from the [[American Computer & Robotics Museum]] in 1999.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://acrmuseum.org/1999|title = Stibitz-Wilson Awards 1999}}</ref>
* In 2000, he received the honorary doctorate degree from URV, Spain.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://digital.publicacionsurv.cat/index.php/purv/catalog/book/237|title=Investidura com a doctor honoris causa de l'Excm. Sr. Vinton Gray Cerf, 2000|date=June 26, 2017|access-date=September 29, 2020|archive-date=March 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301095145/http://digital.publicacionsurv.cat/index.php/purv/catalog/book/237|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*He received the [[Living Legend Medal]] from the Library of Congress in April 2000.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Living Legends (May 2000) - Library of Congress Information Bulletin |url=https://www.loc.gov/loc/lcib/0005/livleg.html |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=www.loc.gov}}</ref>
*In 2000, he was made a Fellow of the [[Computer History Museum]] "for his contributions to computer architecture, operating systems, and software engineering."<ref>{{cite web
 |url          = http://www.computerhistory.org/fellowawards/hall/bios/Vinton,Cerf/
 |title        = Vinton Cerf
 |publisher    = Computer History Museum
 |access-date   = May 23, 2013
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20130702213555/http://www.computerhistory.org/fellowawards/hall/bios/Vinton,Cerf/
 |archive-date = July 2, 2013
 |url-status     = dead
 |df           = mdy-all
}}</ref>
*Cerf was selected as a Fellow of the [[Association for Women in Science]] (AWIS) in 2000.
*Cerf was awarded the Award of Technology from the Telluride Tech Festival in 2002, also known as the Tesla Festival since the world's first AC hydro-power power plant was built in Telluride in 1891 by L.L. Nunn who purchased the generator and plans from George Westinghouse and Tesla.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Telluride Tech Festival {{!}} Celebrating innovation |url=http://www.techfestival.org/index.html?p=314.html |access-date=2023-07-18 |language=en-US}}</ref>
*Cerf and Kahn were the winners of the [[Turing Award]] for 2004,<ref name="turing"/> for their "pioneering work on [[internetworking]], including .. the Internet's basic [[communications protocols]] .. and for inspired leadership in networking."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://amturing.acm.org/award_winners/cerf_1083211.cfm|title=ACM: Fellows Award / Vinton G. Cerf |publisher=amturing.acm.org |date=June 4, 2011 |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref>
*In November 2005, Vinton Cerf and Kahn were awarded the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] by President [[George W. Bush]] for their contributions to the creation of the Internet.<ref name="whitehouse"/>
*He and Robert Kahn were inducted into the [[National Inventors Hall of Fame]] in May 2006.<ref name=":0" />
*Vinton Cerf was awarded the St. Cyril and Methodius in the Coat of Arms Order in July 2006<ref>{{cite web|url=http://isoc.bg/it-delegation.html |title=ISOC-Bulgaria: IT-delegation in Sofia |publisher=Isoc.bg |access-date=December 2, 2011}}</ref>
*Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn were each inducted as an Honorary Fellow of the [[Society for Technical Communication]] (STC) in May 2006
*He and Robert Kahn were awarded the [[Japan Prize]] in January 2008.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.japanprize.jp/prize/2008/e1_cerf_kahn.htm|title=2008 (24th) Japan Prize Laureate}}{{Dead link|date=August 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
*Cerf was inducted into the [[Worshipful Company of Information Technologists]] and given the [[Freedom of the City]] of London in April 2008.<ref name=":0" />
*Cerf was awarded an honorary membership in the [[Yale Political Union]] after keynoting a lively debate on the subject "Resolved: Online Communities are Real Communities." The motion passed.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20150904030956/http://www.yale.edu/ypu/minutes/ypu-2009-04-15.html MINUTES OF THE FLOOR MEETING OF THE YALE POLITICAL UNION]. Yale.edu, April 15, 2009</ref>
*In celebration of the five year-anniversary of YouTube he was selected as a guest [[curator]] by the site, and chose the six videos on YouTube he found most memorable.<ref>{{cite web|author=FiveYear |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zulDYxyv4KQ&feature=PlayList&p=E393E6A9AACD5554&playnext_from=PL&index=0  |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/zulDYxyv4KQ| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|title=Vint Cerf's Top YouTube Videos |work=Youtube | date=May 9, 2010 |access-date=December 2, 2011}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
* IEEE-HKN [[Eta Kappa Nu]] Eminent Member, 2010<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hkn.ieee.org/get-involved/awards/eminent-member-recognition|title=Eminent Member Recognition|access-date=July 9, 2019|archive-date=May 27, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190527061504/https://hkn.ieee.org/get-involved/awards/eminent-member-recognition/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*In May 2011, he was awarded an [[Hasso Plattner Institute for Digital Engineering|HPI]] Fellowship as "...a tribute to his work for a new medium which influenced the everyday life of our society like no other one."<ref>"Vinton G. Cerf, who developed together with Robert E. Kahn the TCP/IP protocol was awarded as a HPI Fellow on May 25th 2011. The HPI award is a tribute to his work for a new medium which influenced the everyday life of our society like no other one." {{cite web |url=http://www.hpi.uni-potsdam.de/personen/hpi_fellows_guests.html?L=1#c21361 |title=HPI Fellows & Guests |access-date=May 27, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110520143230/http://www.hpi.uni-potsdam.de/personen/hpi_fellows_guests.html?L=1#c21361 |archive-date=May 20, 2011  }}</ref>
*In September 2011 he was made a distinguished fellow of [[British Computer Society]], in recognition of his outstanding contribution and service to the advancement of computing.<ref>{{cite web|last=British Computer Society|title=Vint Cerf named BCS Distinguished Fellow|url=http://www.bcs.org/content/conWebDoc/41990?src=ebcs|access-date=September 28, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403041300/http://www.bcs.org/content/conWebDoc/41990?src=ebcs|archive-date=April 3, 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*In 2012 he was inducted as a Pioneer into the [[Internet Hall of Fame]]<ref>[http://www.internethalloffame.org/inductees/year/2012 2012 Inductees] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121213033309/http://internethalloffame.org/inductees/year/2012 |date=December 13, 2012 }}, [[Internet Hall of Fame]] website. Last accessed April 24, 2012</ref>
*In 2013, Cerf was one of five Internet and Web pioneers awarded the inaugural [[Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering]].<ref>[http://qeprize.org/internet-and-web-pioneers-win-qeprize/ "2013 Winners Announced"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170102085500/http://qeprize.org/internet-and-web-pioneers-win-qeprize/ |date=January 2, 2017 }} Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering</ref>
* In 2013, Cerf presented the [[Bernard Price Memorial Lecture]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.saiee.org.za/News/DisplayNewsItem.aspx?niid=17943|title=62nd Bernard Price Memorial Lecture|date=September 5, 2013|publisher=South African Institute of Electrical Engineers (SAIEE)|access-date=September 25, 2015}}</ref>
* In 2014, Cerf was awarded the [[Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana]], 1st class for his role in invention of TCP/IP by president of [[Estonia]] [[Toomas Hendrik Ilves]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Bearers of decorations – Vinton Gray Cerf |url=https://corporate-awards.ieee.org/event/2023-vic-summit-honors-ceremony-gala/ |access-date=February 6, 2023 |archive-date=February 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206092730/https://corporate-awards.ieee.org/event/2023-vic-summit-honors-ceremony-gala/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* In 2014, Cerf was awarded Officer of the [[French Légion d'honneur]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.france-science.org/cerf.html|title=Vinton Cerf Appointed an Officer of the Legion of Honor|access-date=November 22, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151122220702/http://www.france-science.org/cerf.html|archive-date=November 22, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* In 2015, Cerf received an honorary doctorate from the [[University of Reading]], UK.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reading.ac.uk/news-archive/press-releases/pr637253.html|title='Father of the Internet' receives Honorary Degree from the University of Reading|website=University of Reading}}</ref>
* Cerf was elected a [[List of Fellows of the Royal Society elected in 2016|Foreign Member of The UK Royal Society in 2016]]<ref name="frs" />
* In 2018, Cerf was named a recipient of the [[Benjamin Franklin Medal (Franklin Institute)|Benjamin Franklin Medal]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fi.edu/laureates/vinton-gray-cerf|title=Vinton Gray Cerf|date=November 2, 2017}}</ref>
* In 2018, Cerf was awarded Catalonia's International Award<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ccma.cat/324/vinton-cerf-un-dels-pares-dinternet-premi-internacional-catalunya-2018/noticia/2896661/|title=Vinton Cerf, un dels pares d'internet, premi Internacional Catalunya 2018|date=January 9, 2019|publisher=324}}</ref>
* In 2023, Cerf was awarded the IEEE Medal of Honor for co-creating the Internet architecture and providing sustained leadership in its phenomenal growth in becoming society's critical infrastructure<ref>{{cite web|url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/2023-ieee-medal-of-honor|title=IEEE Medal of Honor Goes to Vint Cerf|date=January 31, 2023|publisher=324}}</ref>
* In 2024, Cerf was inducted into the [[California Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://californiamuseum.org/california-hall-of-fame/17th-annual-california-hall-of-fame-california-museum/|title=17th Annual California Hall of Fame|work=California Museum|access-date=August 21, 2024|archive-date=August 21, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240821015235/https://californiamuseum.org/california-hall-of-fame/17th-annual-california-hall-of-fame-california-museum/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

== Partial bibliography ==
[[File:Vint Cerf ARO2017.jpg|thumb|upright|Vint Cerf, before his talk in memory of Dr. [[John Niparko]] at the 2017 MidWinter Meeting of the [[Association for Research in Otolaryngology]] in Baltimore]]

=== Author ===
{{Div col|colwidth=35em}}
*''Zero Text Length EOF Message'' ({{IETF RFC|13}}, August 1969)
*''IMP-IMP and HOST-HOST Control Links'' ({{IETF RFC|18}}, September 1969)
*''ASCII format for network interchange'' ({{IETF RFC|20}}, October 1969)
*''Host-host control message formats'' ({{IETF RFC|22}}, October 1969)
*''Data transfer protocols'' ({{IETF RFC|163}}, May 1971)
*''PARRY encounters the DOCTOR'' ({{IETF RFC|439}}, January 1973)
*'' 'Twas the night before start-up'' ({{IETF RFC|968}}, December 1985)
*''Report of the second Ad Hoc Network Management Review Group'', {{IETF RFC|1109}}, August 1989
* ''Internet Activities Board'', {{IETF RFC|1120}}, September 1989
* ''Thoughts on the National Research and Education Network'', {{IETF RFC|1167}}, July 1990
* ''Networks'', [[Scientific American Special Issue on Communications, Computers, and Networks]], September 1991
* ''Guidelines for Internet Measurement Activities'', October 1991
*''A VIEW FROM THE 21ST CENTURY'', {{IETF RFC|1607}}, April 1, 1994
*''An Agreement between the Internet Society and Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the Matter of ONC RPC and XDR Protocols'', {{IETF RFC|1790}}, April 1995
*''I REMEMBER IANA'', {{IETF RFC|2468}}, October 17, 1998
* ''Memo from the Consortium for Slow Commotion Research (CSCR'', {{IETF RFC|1217}}, April 1, 1999
*''The Internet is for Everyone'', {{IETF RFC|3271}}, April 2002
{{Div col end}}

=== Co-author ===
{{Div col|colwidth=35em}}

* Vinton Cerf, Robert Kahn, [http://www-net.cs.umass.edu/653-04/documents/cerfkahn.pdf ''A Protocol for Packet Network Intercommunication''] ([[IEEE]] Transactions on Communications, May 1974)
* Vinton Cerf, Yogen Dalal, Carl Sunshine, ''Specification of Internet Transmission Control Program'' ({{IETF RFC|675}}, December 1974)
* Vinton Cerf, [[Jon Postel]], ''Mail transition plan'' ({{IETF RFC|771}}, September 1980)
* Vinton Cerf, K.L. Mills ''Explaining the role of GOSIP'', {{IETF RFC|1169}}, August 1990
* Clark, Chapin, Cerf, Braden, Hobby, ''Towards the Future Internet Architecture'', {{IETF RFC|1287}}, December 1991
* Vinton Cerf et al., ''A Strategic Plan for Deploying an Internet X.500 Directory Service'', {{IETF RFC|1430}}, February 1993
* Vinton Cerf & [[Bob Kahn]], ''Al Gore and the Internet,''  2000-09-28<ref>{{cite web | url= https://www.theregister.co.uk/2000/10/02/net_builders_kahn_cerf_recognise/ |title= Net builders Kahn, Cerf recognise Al Gore: Grateful for the inventor's genius | author = Thomas C Greene | date = October 2, 2000 | work = [[The Register]] |access-date=December 2, 2011 | archive-date=December 13, 2013| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131213151052/https://www.theregister.co.uk/2000/10/02/net_builders_kahn_cerf_recognise/ | url-status = live }}</ref>
* Vinton Cerf et al., ''Internet Radio Communication System'' July 9, 2002, U.S. Patent [https://web.archive.org/web/20111112215717/http://www.google.com/patents?id=v7ALAAAAEBAJ 6,418,138]
* Vinton Cerf et al., ''System for Distributed Task Execution'' June 3, 2003, U.S. Patent [https://web.archive.org/web/20111112215616/http://www.google.com/patents?id=ylh8AAAAEBAJ 6,574,628]
* Vinton Cerf et al., ''Delay-Tolerant Networking Architecture (Informational Status)'', {{IETF RFC|4838}}, April 2007
{{Div col end}}

Cerf writes under the column name "CERF'S UP", and Cerf's car has a [[vanity plate]] (registration) "CERFSUP".<ref name="2018-08_ACM">{{cite journal |doi = 10.1145/3235764|title = Traceability|year = 2018|last1 = Cerf|first1 = Vinton G.|journal = Communications of the ACM|volume = 61|issue = 8|page = 7|doi-access = free}})</ref>

==See also==

* [[History of the Internet]]
* [[List of Internet pioneers]]
* [[List of pioneers in computer science]]
* [[Paul Baran]] and [[Donald Davies]], independently invented packet-switched networks
* [[Protocol Wars]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|32em}}

==Further reading==
* {{Citation |last=Cerf |first=Vinton G. |date=April 24, 1990 |title=Oral history interview with Vinton G. Cerf |publisher=[[Charles Babbage Institute]] |location=Minnesota, Minneapolis |url=http://purl.umn.edu/107214}}
* {{Citation |last=Cerf |first=Vinton |date=May 17, 1999 |title=Dr. Vinton Cerf: An Interview Conducted by David Hochfelder |publisher=[[Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers]] |url=http://ethw.org/Oral-History:Vinton_Cerf}}
* {{cite interview |last=Cerf |first=Vinton G. |interviewer=Suzanne Butler Gwiazda |title=Vinton Cerf: An Oral History |work=Stanford Historical Society Oral History Program |date=2020 |publisher=Stanford University |location=Stanford, California |url=https://exhibits.stanford.edu/oral-history/catalog/pj259nj7501}}

== External links ==
{{wikiquote}}
{{commons category|Vinton Cerf|Vint Cerf}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150312003109/http://research.google.com/pubs/author32412.html Bio at Google]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110518161138/https://icannwiki.org/Vinton_Cerf Vint Cerf] on the [[ICANN]] [[wiki]]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qguED5Aouv4 Dr. Vint Cerf on "Reinventing the Internet"] (YouTube). [[Internet Society]]. (May 13, 2013)
* {{TED speaker}}
* {{C-SPAN|41279}}

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{{IEEE Medal of Honor Laureates 2001–2025}}
{{Internet Hall of Fame}}
{{Turing award}}
{{Charles Stark Draper Prize}}
{{Japan Prize}}
{{Prince of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research}}
{{Telecommunications}}
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