OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE ELQN BOARD
DATE: January 15, 2025
STATUS: APPROVED
At the start of 2025, the Board of the E-Learning Quality Network (ELQN) reached a unanimous decision to evolve our transparency protocols. To protect the integrity of our network and the safety of our members, we are transitioning our public-facing registry into a Secure, ID-Based Verification Portal. This decision is the result of a collegial review of our security standards (ISO/IEC 27001) and a proactive response to the emerging threats posed by automated technologies.
The Rationale: Why Privacy is the New Standard of Trust
In previous years, a public registry was a symbol of transparency. Today, in an environment saturated with Autonomous AI Agents, Automated Parsing Tools, Organized Cyber-Syndicates and many other threats, a public registry has become a high-risk vulnerability. Our decision is based on the following pillars:
- Defending Against “Identity Spoofing” and Spear-Phishing
Public registries provide a “hit list” for bad actors. Cyber-syndicates harvest member data to launch sophisticated Spear-Phishing campaigns sending fraudulent emails that appear to come from ELQN. By hiding the registry, we deny these attackers the contact lists they need to impersonate our office or target our members with deceptive “renewal” or “security” scams.
- Neutralizing Autonomous AI & Intelligent Scrapers
Modern AI agents no longer just collect text they “harvest intelligence.” These tools can parse our entire network in seconds to create “deepfake” institutional profiles or training sets for fraudulent websites. By moving to a 1-to-1 Verification Model, we disrupt the data-supply chain for these autonomous threats.
- Preventing Data Resale and Commercial Misuse
We have observed an industry-wide rise in the unauthorized “enrichment” of member databases. Publicly accessible directories are frequently harvested by third-party brokers and sold as high-value “leads lists.” This leads to members being bombarded with unsolicited marketing and predatory services. ELQN is committed to ensuring your professional data is not a commodity for sale.
- Upholding “Privacy by Design” (ISO/IEC 27001 Compliance)
As an organization certified in Information Security Management, ELQN must prioritize data minimization. Transitioning to a non-public registry aligns our network with GDPR and ISO/IEC 27001 standards. This “Need-to-Know” access model ensures that member data is only disclosed for legitimate validation purposes, returning Data Sovereignty to our members.
How the New System Works
The ELQN seal remains a prestigious symbol of quality, but its validation is now a secure. To confirm an institution’s status, stakeholders (students, partners, or regulators) must use one of the following methods:
- Credential ID Verification. Enter the Credential ID directly into our secure verification portal.
- File-Based Verification. Upload the certificate PDF file into our secure verification portal.
- Dedicated Certificate Web-Pages: In addition to the verification portal, every official ELQN certificate now has a permanent, unique hosting page on our secure subdomain: membership.elqn.org
- Example: https://membership.elqn.org/en/c/[Unique-Credential-ID]
- By clicking this direct link provided by a member, a visitor can instantly view the authentic digital version of the certificate. This ensures that the viewer is seeing data directly from our servers, making it impossible for “shadow institutions” to spoof or forge credentials.
To read more about the verification methods please visit our verification portal information page.
A Unified Commitment to Integrity
This shift represents a move toward a “Zero-Trust” security architecture the gold standard for modern digital institutions. We are not hiding our community; we are fortifying it. By protecting our registry, we are ensuring that the ELQN name remains a mark of exclusive quality that cannot be scraped, spoofed, or abused.
We thank our global community for their support in this transition as we build a safer, more resilient digital future.
Sincerely,
The ELQN Board
Quality through Security. Integrity through Innovation.
