What is a Certification Authority (CA)?

Certification Authorities, or CAs as they are commonly known, are business entities that are allowed to issue trusted SSL Certificates. CAs have invested in establishing the technology, the support, and the legal and commercial infrastructures associated with providing SSL certificates.

Even though CAs are essentially self-regulated, a close regulatory body is the WebTrust compliancy program operated by AICPA/CICA. The majority of CAs comply to the WebTrust principles, however some CAs do not have WebTrust compliance.