VeriSign Offers Digital Certificate Fast-Track

Computergram International, August 24, 1999

On the heels of its Go Secure Components for Exchange, VeriSign Inc has launched Go Secure for Web Applications. As with the components, the idea behind the new service is to make it as easy as possible for enterprises to add digital certificates to their business-to-business and business-to-consumer e-commerce applications.

It is widely recognized that the main obstacle to widespread deployment of digital certificates is the perceived cost of implementation and the difficulty of using the technology. In VeriSign's view, digital certificates should be as easy to use as passwords, as well as being far more secure. The company has its eye on the market for large-scale extranets providing supply-chain management, self-help human resources, online banking and trading. The new service automates certificate acquisition and handles user authentication and password replacement. New administrative access control components should make it easier to set up secure web applications though canned, pre-configured web front-end pages.