Think Positive Cyber

Digital certificates help establish trust in online communications by connecting an identity with cryptographic information. A digital certificate is a digital document that verifies the identity of an individual, device, service, or organization. One important certificate-related format is PKCS number 12, commonly shortened to P12. It provides a file format for storing and exchanging personal identity information, including private keys and digital certificates. The memory connections are: identity document = digital certificate and private keys plus certificates in a portable file = P12.

Public Key Infrastructure separates important responsibilities between the Registration Authority and the Certificate Authority. The Registration Authority accepts certificate requests and authenticates the entity making the request. Think of it as the identity-checking part of the process. The Certificate Authority is the trusted third party responsible for issuing, revoking, and managing digital certificates. The memory connection is: RA checks the requester; CA manages the certificate. Keeping those two roles separate makes certificate questions easier to recognize.

Certificate revocation provides another useful distinction. A Certificate Revocation List, or CRL, is a periodically published list of certificates that have been revoked. OCSP checks certificate status on demand and is generally the faster choice when checking the validity of one certificate. The memory connection is: CRL = published revoked-certificate list; OCSP = ask about one certificate now. Together, certificates, P12 files, Registration Authorities, Certificate Authorities, CRLs, and OCSP form important parts of the trust system behind secure digital communications.