Certification authority is the system used to generate digital certificates containing private and public keys. You can also use the system to create digital certificates which contain digital signatures. Digital certificates which contain digital signatures also require the use of both private and public keys. Users will need their own digital certificate with their private key for encrypting emails, files and other data they send electronically to other users. Users, who receive this information, will need their own digital certificate containing the matching public key.
A Certification Authority Automatically Generates Common Information in Digital Certificates
There are certain types of information which are common to all digital certificates, regardless of what type of certificates you generate. Your certification authority system automatically creates this information every time you generate a new digital certificate. There also is optional information which you can include, such as setting an expiration date and time within the digital certificate.