Digital Certificates
A digital certificate is a secure digital key that certifies the identity of the holder. Issued by a Certification Authority (CA), it typically contains a user's name, a public key, and related information. APNIC is a Certificate Authority - an entity which issues digital certificates for use by other parties.
Public and private keys: How they work and how are they related to the certificate.
In public key cryptography, data that has been digitally signed or encrypted by a private key can only be validated or decrypted by its corresponding public key and vice versa. Your private key should be kept secure and never revealed to other parties. Your public key, however, should be as widely distributed as possible so other parties can validate and decrypt data signed by you and send data back to you securely.
Your APNIC Certificate contains your identity (name, e-mail, country, APNIC account name) and your public key. Its authenticity is certified by APNIC.
How to use digital certificates for identity
You need an APNIC Digital Certificate installed in your browser to perform certain privileged operations in MyAPNIC. These include;
- Managing staff contacts. Only registered Corporate Contacts have the authority to change or approve users in MyAPNIC.
- Online voting in the APNIC elections
- The secure email exchange with APNIC
An APNIC Digital Certificate is not an APNIC Resource Certificate, it is another use of the PKI by APNIC.
However, a valid APNIC Digital Certificate is required to create, alter or destroy an APNIC Resource Certificate within MyAPNIC. Users will also need the necessary permissions assigned by their organization's Corporate Contact.
Any APNIC account holder may be issued with a digital certificate. APNIC recommends all Corporate Contacts install a digital certificate to properly manage their account.
Where to next?
- Apply for an APNIC Digital Certificate
- Read the APNIC Certificate Authority Terms & Conditions
Need help?
