Internet Explorer 6: Using Digital Certificates
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Secure communication online can be complex because the communicating parties do not physically meet. This can allow an unethical person to intercept messages or to impersonate another person or entity. To establish the necessary level of trust, there must be a way to authenticate the identities of those communicating.
The digital certificate is a common credential that's used to authenticate identity. A trusted organization assigns a certificate to an individual or an entity, the subject of that certificate. The trusted organization that issues the certificate is a Certification Authority (CA) and is known as the certificate's issuer. A trustworthy CA will issue a certificate only after verifying the identity of the certificate's subject.
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 uses digital certificates to authenticate clients and servers on the Web and help to provide security for browser communications. For a thorough understanding of digital certificates and how to configure settings for the certificates that you trust, refer to "Chapter 6, Digital Certificates" (part of the Internet Explorer 6 Resource Kit documentation). The topics covered are outlined below:
Understanding Digital Certificates
Commercial Certification Authorities
Certificate Servers
Authenticode Technology
Secure Client and Server Communication
Using Digital Certificates
Installing and Removing Trusted Certificates
Adding Trusted Publishers
Configuring Advanced Security Options for Certificate and Authentication Features
