About EV SSL Certificates


The Extended Validation (EV) SSL Certificate standard is intended to provide an improved level of authentication of entities that request digital certificates for securing transactions on their Web sites. The next generation of Internet browsers will display EV SSL-secured Web sites in a way that allows visitors to instantly ascertain that a given site is indeed secure and can be trusted. A new vetting format, which all issuing Certification Authorities (CAs) must comply with, ensures a uniform standard for certificate issuance. This means that all CAs must adhere to the same high security standards when processing certificate requests. Consequently, visitors to EV SSL-secured Web sites can trust that the organization that operates the site has undergone and passed the rigorous EV SSL authentication process as defined by the CA/Browser Forum. Internet users thus will be able to trust that particular Web sites are what they claim to be, rather than fraudulent mirror sites operated by perpetrators of phishing schemes.

Allowing Internet users to instantly distinguish EV SSL-secured Web sites, new versions of the Internet's leading browsers will display EV SSL certificates differently than the standard "padlock" method used for existing types of SSL certificates. See below for examples of how the Internet Explorer 7 and Opera 8 browsers will be displaying EV SSL Certificates.

IE7 SSL Certificate

Opera SSL Certificate

EV SSL certificates will prove particularly useful for companies whose Internet domains are considered at a high risk of being targeted by phishing schemes and other types of Internet fraud. High-risk domains include domains owned by high-profile online financial services, banking sites, auction sites, popular retailers and other sites that conduct Internet transactions likely to be targeted by Internet fraud.