Administration of users and identities is becoming more important than ever in the electronic world. The conventional method of password-based user authentication gives rise to security issues as the intrusion techniques are getting more sophisticated at an alarming speed. In addition, this method is also becoming a real challenge for users who have to memorise and regularly change passwords for a rapidly growing number of different systems and access types. These problems can be solved by certificate-based authentication solutions which can be bound to an additional hardware/security token (smart card, USB flash drive).

Such certificates can be used not only for user authentication, but also for signing and encrypting data and messages. A so-called Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is required to generate and administrate such user certificates. Depending on the application, the security requirements and the company size, different types of infrastructures are possible – from "small" Windows- or Linux-based PKIs all the way to complex Trust Centre environments complying with the stringent requirements of the digital signature legislation.

secunet is your experienced partner for the implementation of your PKI. We have played a decisive role in setting up all accredited certification services according to the German Digital Signature Act and are clearly the market leader in this field. Our comprehensive background is the result of our work in more than 200 successful, real-life PKI projects so that we can professionally assist you in implementing your PKI solution.