This guide will show you how Code Signing Certificates are used to secure code that can be downloaded from the Internet. You will also learn how these certificates operate with different software platforms.
Certify your
Software Integrity
with thawteC ode Signing Ctifeircates
Sign your code and active cont e fonrtsecure online distribution...
1. Overview
2. Why a thawte Code Signing Certificate?
3. Who needs a thawte Code Signing Certificate?
4. Does thawte certify your code?
5. How can customers identify your digital signature?
6. Time Stamping
7. How to use the Multiple Code Signing Certificate
8. Useful URLs
9. What Role Does thawte Play?
10. The Value of Authentication
11. Contact thawte1
1. Overview
As a software developer you know that the product you make availableon the Internet can be tampered with (without detection) if it is notsecured. You want customers to know that the software really comesfrom the publisher who signed it and that it has not been altered orcorrupted. That is why you need a Code Signing Certificate fromthawte.
thawte is dedicated to making the Internet a secure and viableplatform for commerce and the distribution of content. A thawteCode Signing Certificate ensures customers downloading yoursoftware from the Internet that the code has not been tampered with.With a thawte Code Signing Certificate, your code will be as safeand trustworthy as it would be if you shrink-wrapped it and sold it offa store shelf.
This guide will show you how Code Signing Certificates are used tosecure code that can be downloaded from the Internet. You will alsolearn how these certificates operate with different software platforms.2
2. Why a thawte Code Signing Certificate?
Customers trust software they buy in a store because they can tellwho published the product and can see whether the package hasbeen opened or not.
The Internet cannot offer the reassurance provided by shrink-wrappedsoftware. When customers download software from the Internet, themost they see is a message warning them about
As a solution major software vendors such as Netscape and Microsofthave developed tools for code signing. Code signing allows a developerto sign his/her application digitally. On the strength of that signature,the browser or operating system then decides whether or not to trustthe software.
When customers download software signed with a thawte CodeSigning Certificate, they can be assured of:
Content source:The software really comes from the publisher who signed it.Content integrity:The software has not been altered or corrupted since it was signed.
A thawte Code Signing Certificate goes a long way in establishinguser confidence.
Users have recourse to the publisher, should the software performa malicious or unacceptable activity on their computers. Thisaccountability and possibility of recourse serve as a strong deterrentto the distribution of harmful code.
Developers and webmasters benefit from signed code because itpositively supports their reputation and makes their products harderto falsify. By signing code, developers build a relationship of trust withusers. Users will gain confidence in downloading signed softwarefrom that publisher or web site.3
3. Who needs a Thawte Code Signing Certificate?
Any publisher who plans to distribute code or content over the Internet, orover corporate extranets, risks impersonation and tamperingth. awteCode Signing Certificates protect against these hazards.
The thawte Code Signing Certificate provides greater assurance aboutthe identity of a publishing organization. It is designed to rerepsent the highlevel of assurance provided by today's retail channels for software.
thawte Developer Certificates are used to sign Java applets for the Java2 plugin, Navigator/JVM 1.1.x and Microsoft Authenticode. They can alsobe used for signing .cab, .exe, and .dll files, and for signing Office 2000Macro and Internet Explorer Object files.
thawte offers a number of different types of code signing certificates, aswell as one that can be used across the board. It is possible to buy oneCode Signing Certificate fromt hawte and to use it for MicrosoftAuthentiCode, Microsoft Office 2000/VBA Macro Signing, NetscapOeb jectSigning, and Marimba Channel Signing, and with some tweakingc iat n beused to sign Java 2 applets created with particular versions of the JDK.
4. Does thawte certify your code?
No. thawte issues you as the developer with a certificate once wehave verified you... [download for more]
