The Global Network Initiative (GNI) is a multistakeholder organization made up of more than 100 leading academics, civil society organizations, investors, and tech companies, with a mission to protect and advance freedom of expression and privacy rights. GNI’s diverse range of expert members come together to share information, learn, and collectively foster responsible business conduct and an appropriate role for government action.
Central to GNI’s work is the conduct of periodic, independent assessments of company members’ efforts to implement the GNI Principles on Freedom of Expression and Privacy and Implementation Guidelines. In December 2022, GNI completed its fourth independent assessment cycle. Information about prior assessment cycles, including each cycle’s respective public assessment report, can be found here.
GNI’s next (fifth) assessment cycle will run until mid-2026, with independent assessments of GNI companies by accredited assessors taking place on a rolling basis beginning in the second half of 2024 and running through the end of 2025.
GNI invites organizations interested in becoming accredited assessors to submit their credentials as described here. GNI anticipates signing Master Service Agreements (MSAs) with qualified assessors in April 2024, with accreditation training in May 2024. Accreditation in the fifth assessment cycle will be subject to a fee, which will be communicated prior to the signing of the MSAs.