Feb 21, 2006 : GeoTrust toOffer High Assurance SSL

📅 February 21, 2006 - SSL certificate authority GeoTrust (geotrust.com) announced on Tuesday that it would introduce support for new "high assurance" SSL certificate standards. The standards, says GeoTrust, were developed by browser makers Microsoft, Mozilla and Opera, along with GeoTrust, VeriSign and other certificate authorities and the American Bar Association Information Security Committee.


GeoTrust says the new certificate standards involve a deeper level of business verification than existing vetting methods. New-generation browser functions will include tools for prominently displaying high assurance SSL certificate identity information, making it easier for Web users to ensure they are not visiting fraudulent Web sites.

The new specifications for high assurance SSL are expected to be complete "in the coming months," according to a GeoTrust press release. New standards for identity verification will include standardized processes across certificate authorities for verifying an organization's identity, verifying that the would-be purchaser has the legal authority to make the SSL certificate request for that organization and confirming that the entity is a legitimate business and not a shell or false front.

Current vetting processes commonly rely on email and faxed information, database lookups and phone calls, and procedures vary among certificate authorities.

"We took a leading role in this initiative, which has brought together the industry's major browser developers and Certificate Authorities, as well as companies such as RSA Security and Identrus, because we know that it's critically important to find new ways to enhance online trust," stated Neal Creighton, chief executive officer of GeoTrust. "By creating a new and higher standard for verifying organizations, the High Assurance SSL certificate standard will help to restore the type of business innovation that the Internet promises."