[CQ-Contest] ARRL and Open Logs - Time for the next step?

[Dick Green WC1M]

> If contest sponsors were to upload contest logs to LotW, they (the
> contest sponsor) would need their own "private key" and the system
> would need to be modified to validate either the individual station
> private key or the private key of any number of possible contest
> sponsors.

Not so. There's no need for the contest sponsor to sign the log. 

The contester would simply use TQSL to sign the log with his/her LoTW
private key before uploading it to the contest robot. A copy of the signed
log can then be sent to LoTW, either before or after checking. Since the log
is compressed, the contest sponsor would need a copy of the LoTW
decompression code, but there's no security risk in ARRL disclosing that. 

Pete didn't say so explicitly, but he may have been thinking that only QSOs
confirmed by the log checker would be forwarded to LoTW. This is feasible
because TQSL signs each and every log entry, not just the entire log
submission. We deliberately designed it that way so that each individual QSO
would be verifiable, even if it became separated or disconnected from other
QSOs in the uploaded log.

However, I'm not sure it buys anything to upload partial logs with only
confirmed QSOs to LoTW. LoTW won't issue a QSL for a busted call, so it
doesn't matter if the QSOs are confirmed by the contest sponsor or not.
Also, it's possible for the log checker to disallow QSOs that are perfectly
legitimate for LoTW (e.g., QSOs made during an off-time or outside contest
hours.)

73, Dick WC1M