This document specifies information metadata, auxiliary fields, SAM interoperability, protection metadata and programming interfaces of genomic information. It defines:

—    metadata storage and interpretation for the different encapsulation levels as specified in ISO/IEC 23092-1 (in Clause 6);

—    protection elements providing confidentiality, integrity and privacy rules at the different encapsulation levels specified in ISO/IEC 23092-1 (in Clause 7);

—    how to associate auxiliary fields to encoded reads (in Clause 8);

—    mechanisms for backward compatibility with existing SAM content, and exportation to this format (in Annex C);

—    interfaces to access genomic information coded in compliance with ISO/IEC 23092-1 and ISO/IEC 23092-2 (in subclause 8.1).