Gerard Creamer bio / election statement

The Internet is about to become the glue of our lives, underlying everything we do day to day. The future, when there is no money and we all have jet-packs, isn't here yet, but in the next five years almost every part of our lives will be managed in some way over the Internet. The direction these developments take during their initial development will dictate the landscape of our future lives for decades to come.

InternetNZ has played a vital role in the establishment of standards for the pipes, and that work should continue.

InternetNZ has a crucial role to play in ensuring that as the systems that run our lives are developed and as the underlying infrastructure is built that the long term goal of open access for all is assured. Focussing on 'stuff that makes the tubes useful' is very important in terms of a balanced strategy and we mustn't lose sight of that. This is a huge challenge, and I believe I have a lot to offer in meeting this challenge.

My life’s work to date has been in the places where technology and people meet, from working on interfaces for Internet banking in the mid to late 90s, through to working on self service web based systems and payments technologies today.

I sit on the New Zealand Payments Forum, a group that works on electronic payment issues, with members from financial institutions, payment enablers, and significant merchant groups. Our work is very much behind the scenes but of immense value to all New Zealanders who pay anything electronically.  It is from this work that I have very clear visibility of the complete lack of standards for Internet based systems, both in terms of security and privacy, and the lack of understanding that New Zealand laws are only enforceable within New Zealand. 

I have been in business for over 11 years and have worked in the Internet space for over 14 years. I own and run three successful Internet based businesses, a web development company that builds web based systems that actually do useful things, a payments company that processes credit card payments, and a hosting and collocation company. I understand BGP, GST, and the need to balance infrastructure growth with paying the wages. I understand that the decisions I make today will impact on my entire future and the future of all of our employees - and the responsibility is very rewarding.

I am an active member of the NZNOG community. I have spoken at the last three NZNOG conferences, on payment security, IDS / IPS, and this year on building a redundant network on a budget with BGP. Last year I became active in the organisation of NZNOG09, which I found very rewarding, and am involved again in the organisation of NZNOG 2010.

I am a father of four young children and understand that all of us have different ways of approaching the same challenge, and that nothing is clear cut - there are multiple correct answers for everything - and the long term outcome is the most important thing.

Vote for me as an InternetNZ councillor and I will work to ensure that your Internet is available for you to use, preferably owned by us all, and that your safety and the safety of your personal and private information is sound.