The XML Security Working Group has published three Proposed Recommendations today:

• XML Signature Syntax and Processing Version 1.1. This document specifies XML digital signature processing rules and syntax. XML Signatures provide integrity, message authentication, and/or signer authentication services for data of any type, whether located within the XML that includes the signature or elsewhere. Comments are welcome through 25 February.
• XML Encryption Syntax and Processing Version 1.1. This document specifies a process for encrypting data and representing the result in XML. The data may be in a variety of formats, including octet streams and other unstructured data, or structured data formats such as XML documents, an XML element, or XML element content. The result of encrypting data is an XML Encryption element that contains or references the cipher data. Comments are welcome through 25 February.
• XML Signature Properties. This document outlines proposed standard XML Signature Properties syntax and processing rules and an associated namespace for these properties. The intent is these can be composed with any version of XML Signature using the XML SignatureProperties element. These properties are intended to meet code signing requirements. Comments are welcome through 25 February.

The group also published six Working Group Notes:

• Functional Explanation of Changes in XML Encryption 1.1 provides a summary of non-editorial changes in XML Encryption 1.1 from the XML Encryption Recommendation.
• XML Security 1.1 Requirements and Design Considerations, summarizes scenarios, design decisions, and requirements for the XML Signature and Canonical XML specifications, to guide ongoing W3C work to revise these specifications.
• XML Security Algorithm Cross-Reference, summarizes XML Security algorithm URI identifiers and the specifications associated with them.
• XML Security Generic Hybrid Ciphers, specifies an XML syntax and processing rules for generic hybrid ciphers and key encapsulation mechanisms and reserves identifiers for algorithms.
• XML Security RELAX NG Schemas, provides non-normative RELAX NG schemas in the compact syntax as well as the XML syntax.
• XML Signature Best Practices, collects best practices for implementers and users of the XML Signature specification, some of which to improve security and mitigate attacks.

Learn more about the Security Activity.

The Web Events Working Group has published a Last Call Working Draft of Touch Events version 1. The Touch Events specification defines a set of low-level events that represent one or more points of contact with a touch-sensitive surface, and changes of those points with respect to the surface and any DOM elements displayed upon it (e.g. for touch screens) or associated with it (e.g. for drawing tablets without displays). It also addresses pen-tablet devices, such as drawing tablets, with consideration toward stylus capabilities. Comments are welcome through 14 February. Learn more about the Rich Web Client Activity.

The IndieUI Working Group today published a First Public Working Draft of IndieUI: Events 1.0 - Events for User Interface Independence. IndieUI defines a way for different user interactions to be translated into simple events and communicated to web applications. (For example, if a user wants to scroll down a page, they might use their finger on a touch screen, or click a scroll bar with a mouse, or use a scroll wheel, or say 'scroll down' with a voice command. With IndieUI, these are all sent to the web app as simply: scroll down.) IndieUI will make it easier for web applications to work in a wide range of contexts — different devices (such as mobile phones and tablets), different assistive technologies (AT), different user needs. With IndieUI, web application developers will have a uniform way to design applications that work for multiple devices and contexts. Comments on this Draft are encouraged by 22 February 2013. Learn more from the IndieUI Overview and the IndieUI: Events expands user interface interactions blog post; read about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

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