All About Various Types of Digital Certificates
The digital certificate is a type of identity card which can be issued to an authorized body. And similarly like the identity card, the digital certificate is
Tamper Proof: It is encrypted to prevent any modification.
Nominal: It is issued to an entity (as the identity card is issued to one person and only one).
Certified: is the “stamp” of the authority that issued it.
Why it is essential to use a digital certificate?
Why is it so essential to ensure that you are connected to the right site? In order to understand this correctly, I will give you an example.
Examples
Imagine there is a power cut in your home and you want to call the electricity board. Then what will be your first step? You will find the number of the electricity board office in the directory and dial it, and finally you will be connected with them.
Now, if your directory has been hacked (it seems impossible with a paper directory.), but in computer science unfortunately it can happen.
Forms of digital certificate.
Three forms of digital certificates exist:
SSL Certificate:
SSL (secure Socket Layer) / TLS (Transport Layer Security) certificate is the most popular digital certificate. This is a data file containing:
A public cryptographic key, attached to the private cryptographic key of an organization or a private individual.
URLs of secure sites,
Corporate name of an organization in case of OV (Organization Verification) and EV (extended Validation) certificates.
The certificate is installed on a server, and it is used to encrypt sensitive data online to ensure a secure connection. It is mostly used in bank transactions or transfer of sensitive data, such as usernames and passwords.
This is physical for use by the padlock and “https” protocol in the URL bar.
Code sign certificate
Code signature certificates allow developers to digitally sign applications and software that are distributed digitally. Code signatures assure customers that the exact content of the software is authentic in its original form, and that the code has not made any modifications between its creation and publication.
The signature protects the code against unauthorized modifications and guarantees its authenticity. When any code change is detected and the application will be considered untrusted. A code signing certificate provides an extra level of trust and assures users not to download malware.
When launching a signed application, the certificate is used to display the degree of verification and information of the developer. By clicking on the certificate details, you have access to the verification level and certification authority information.
Client certificate:
Client certificate plays an important role in ensuring online safety of users. Client certificates allow to confirm the authenticity of a user. They could be a user of the website or the user of an email. It acts as a password, but without any intervention of the user. This way, the server guarantees that it connects to the authorised user and that the entity is secure to work with.
