The Certificate Authority (CA) is an organization responsible for the authentication and verification of websites, emails, and entities through cryptographic keys. It is more like the authenticate identity, responsible for verifying the identities to restrict insurgents with fake identities and hideous intentions.
The CA verifies identities to protect internet users’ best interests through unbiased verification. Now that is a very high-level overview of what a CA does. However, there is a lot more to it. So, let us dive deeper and find out what a CA is all about and how that matters to you. However, before we do that, it is essential to understand what an SSL Certificate is.
What do you mean by an SSL Certificate?
An SSL or TLS Certificate (the two terms are used interchangeably) is a digital certificate that encrypts server-client communication using cryptographic keys. This is where the CA plays a significant role.
SSL certificates are essential because they help to garner trust and build more credibility. This allows online businesses to come across as reliable organizations vouched by a trustworthy, impartial third-party (CA).
What is a Certificate Authority designed to do?
The Certificate Authority is responsible for two core functions — authentication and encryption of websites, emails, individuals, or entities. We shall now break down the fundamental operations of a CA-based on these two core functions.
Authentication
With millions of websites on the worldwide web, it is not easy for internet users to decide which one is legit and which is not. The FBI receives an average of 1300 cybercrime complaints every day, and that’s how many users get scammed in the US alone. This makes it difficult for genuine websites to build trust and credibility, which can be a severe blow for the e-commerce sector, small businesses, and other website owners.
To make the entire process smoother, the CAs authenticate the website, email ID, or entity based on the applicant’s validation level. The CA verifies the validation level’s corresponding criteria and then issues or refuses to issue the certificate. Let us now understand the various types of validations that a CA authenticates.
Domain Validated SSL
This is the most basic SSL certificate, which only binds the domain’s ownership to the applicant. In this case, the CA checks the applicant’s name in the WHOIS record and validates it. It only encrypts one domain but not any subdomains of that domain, nor any additional domains.
Multi-Domain Wildcard SSL Certificates
Wildcard SSL Certificates let you encrypt server-client communication not just for the website’s domain but also for its subdomains. On the other hand, those with multiple websites or domain extensions can use a multi-domain SSL certificate.
However, if you have multiple domains and multi-level subdomains for each domain, you could choose a hybrid called the Multi-domain Wildcard SSL Certificate. This type of certificate is available with two types of validations — Domain Validation (DV) SSL Certificate or Organization Validated (OV) SSL Certificate.
Organization Validated SSL
In OV SSL, the CA validates the type of organization the website represents — firm, government agency, charitable foundation, etc. This prevents the average internet user from getting scammed by threat actors. In this OV type, the certificate authority checks registered business documents and confirms business existence also with the third-party business sources.
Extended Validation SSL
This is the highest level of validation in which the CA performs a comprehensive verification. Before issuance, the CA verifies the individual or business’s legal existence, physical address, contact details, and operational status. The EV SSL once installed shows a company name when you click on a secured padlock in the browser.
Apart from the SSL certificate, the CAs also issue specific other digital certificates, which we shall now discuss.
Code Signing Certificate
You may have installed software applications that warn you about the app coming from an unknown source. This happens when the application does not have a valid Code Signing Certificate installed, which the developer must avail from a Certificate Authority. This indicates that the code has not been tampered with and is safe for the user to download and use. The certificate comes with timestamp feature means if the certificate gets expired, the software will stay trustworthy.
Email Signing Certificate
Also referred to as S/MIME certificates, these certificates bind an email ID to a web server. A ribbon in the email denotes it, and when clicked upon, it confirms the validity of the digital signature.
Document Signing Certificate
This authenticates the sender of an electronic document or a message to be its author.
What are the workings of a Certificate Authority? Understanding Encryption
We have discussed validation, but that is just one of the two critical functions of a Certificate Authority. The other is encryption, which requires two sets of cryptographic keys, known as the public key and the private key.
To get started, the applicant must generate a Certificate Signing Request (CSR), which is nothing but an encoded text file, which is then sent to the Certificate Authority for verification. It includes relevant details of the applicant based on the level of validation sought and the public key.
Upon successful verification, the CA confirms the same and issues the private key to the applicant. Speaking of the private key, it helps decipher messages encrypted by the public key and must be kept highly confidential. So, when someone accesses a website with an SSL, the user can confirm the Certificate Authority’s signature through the CA’s public key.
Conclusion
To sum it up, the Certificate Authority is more like a registrar or a notary that receives and processes applications based on the type of digital certificate and the applicant’s level of validation. Upon successful verification, the CA confirms the same and issues the private key to the applicant. Overall, the Certificate Authority plays a pivotal role in upholding the integrity of the digital world. It helps reduce data theft by enabling an average internet user to distinguish between genuine entities and threat actors.
