History and Facts of Digital Signature Certification in India

The cryptographical process of creating digital signatures that are a cryptic form of the electronic version is a recent development. The notion was first developed in 1976 when some cryptographers and computer scientists got together in the USA. They eventually came up with a primitive and insecure method of creating digital signatures using the RSA algorithm. RSA stands for the researchers involved – Len Adleman, Adi Shamir, and Ronald Rivest.

RSA algorithm was implemented to create the first commercial package for creating digital signatures commercially. The package was named Lotus Notes 1.0 and it was released in the year 1989. This development was followed by the development of other algorithms.

• Merkle Signatures
• Lamport Signatures
• Rabin Signatures

These developments lacked the security features desired. Eventually, in 1988 GMR Signature Scheme was launched. This algorithm was able to protect against forgery of a message and it proved potent enough to be accepted.

In time to come, many cryptographical algorithms came into the picture and they did well. But in the contemporary era the most popular ones are:

• MD5
• SHA-1
• SHA-2
• NTLM
• LANMAN
• SHA 256

These are also known as hash algorithms and are used to generate cryptic forms (hash value) of documents and messages. They are used to create both public and private keys essential for security and identification certified by a certifying authority of CA.

Why Digital Signature Certifications?

Digital signatures are cryptic hash created by using the algorithms described above. They are transformed mathematically into cryptic form and made unreadable by deciphering them. This role of creating a cryptic version of the document and then deciphering them for the right receiver is done using private and public cryptic keys. As a result, the sender has a cryptic hash that is sent to the right person. The certificate authority is responsible for certifying the sender. CA is an entrusted authority that verifies the owner of the digital signature. In India, the CA is authorized by the CCA or Controller of Certifying Authority under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs or MCA as per the information technology act year 2000.

The main purpose of the digital signature certificate (DSC) is to identify the sender and to ensure that the cryptic documents have not been tampered with. This is the only benefit that accrues from DSC and it is enough to strengthen the basis for transactions usually commercial in nature. The certificate contains the public key and details of the sender or an organization that the CA has authenticated.

To buy or purchase a digital signature certification the sender has to send the required details to the CA or a subsidiary authorized by it. The CA acts as a guarantor, and the certificate issued is time-bound. A fee has to be paid to the CA and it depends upon the type of certificate requested. In many regions like APAC which includes India, the UK, the USA, and the EU DSC is considered legally binding.

The DSC provides a high level of security in online transactions by the secure transmission of information. Thus, it is used in e-tendering, e-auctions, secure emails, web-based transactions, tax purposes, e-procurement, etc.

In time to come, DSC will find use in e-Commerce and on various platforms. More organizations would like to feel secure by using these certifications hence their usage is bound to increase. An applicant can buy DSC in Kolkata and Mumbai or anywhere in India from CA. The CA can be contacted through their website.

A group of writers at Above the Fold Digital Marketing and Web Development Company in Mumbai India