Internet standards are specifications created by the IETF and published as RFCs to define Internet technologies and methodologies. RFCs are approved by the IESG and assigned a unique integer identifier. The TCP/IP protocol suite is a set of communication protocols used to enable transmission of data over a network. It includes protocols like TCP, IP, UDP, and others. These protocols operate at different layers, with layers like link, internet, transport, and application. Communication between hosts uses the TCP/IP protocols through these layers.