Abbreviated as
CA, a trusted third-party organization or company that issues
digital certificates used to create
digital signatures and
public-private key pairs. The role of the CA in this process is to guarantee that the individual granted the unique certificate is, in fact, who he or she claims to be. Usually, this means that the CA has an arrangement with a financial institution, such as a credit card company, which provides it with information to confirm an individual's claimed
identity. CAs are a critical component in data
security and
electronic commerce because they guarantee that the two parties exchanging information are really who they claim to be.
Also referred to as a certificate authority.
