Digital Certificates play an important role in cybersecurity today. Therefore, proper management of these Digital Certificates is important in avoiding service outages and mitigating security risks.
In the earlier days, tracking digital certificates was often done using manually created spreadsheets by employees. Updating these spreadsheets is not only time-consuming, but they are also prone to human errors. As such, keeping track of this data was a nightmare for both the organisation and their employees, especially as the number of certificates increased. This is where Certificate Lifecycle Management can help improve processes related to digital certificates.
Certificate Lifecycle Management (CLM) effectively refers to managing digital certificates through various processes like issuance, renewal and revocation. In CLM, the first and most important step is certificate discovery. This is an important process whereby organisations can identify and inventory their digital certificates. The first step of certificate discovery can be done in many ways.
Network scanning
- Network scanning tools to crawl through the organisation’s IP addresses and ports for certificates
- Picks up SSL/TLS certificates installed on various infrastructure components
Agent-based discovery
- Installation of agent on servers to pick up certificates from file systems and local keystores
- Able to pick up certificates that are not detected by Network Scanning
Integration with Certificate Authority
- Direct integration with both internal and external CA to retrieve all certificates issued
After the discovery process to uncover all of the organisation’s digital certificates, we will then be able to create an inventory of these certificates. These certificates can be stored in a centralised repository with their metadata recorded (Subject name, expiration date, issuer, etc.). Thereafter, they can be categorised or sorted according to your organisation’s needs to make full use of the data. For example, they can be sorted by certificates meant for certain departments/countries/services. Automated monitoring can also be applied to alert for certificates that are expiring or revoked to prevent security incidents or service disruption.
In short, with the increased usage and importance of digital certificates, managing these assets is crucial. This is where a certificate lifecycle management solution can effectively automate and oversee the entire lifecycle of your organisation’s digital certificates.
Contact us at https://www.netrust.net/contact-us/ today to learn more about the CLM solution and how it can help your organisation manage digital certificates.
Interested in learning more? Check out this related blog here:
Top 5 Challenges of Digital Certificate Lifecycle Management (And How to Solve Them)
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