電子証明書のクラスについて

つい最近まで電子証明書に分類があることすら知らなかった...。

Verisign の分類
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_certificate

• Class 1 for individuals, intended for email
• Class 2 for organizations, for which proof of identity is required
• Class 3 for servers and software signing, for which independent verification and checking of identity and authority is done by the issuing certificate authority
• Class 4 for online business transactions between companies
• Class 5 for private organizations or governmental security

Microsoft の分類
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc545899.aspx

• Class 1 Class 1 certificates are issued to individuals who have valid e-mail addresses. Class 1 certificates are appropriate for digital signatures, encryption, and electronic access control for non-commercial transactions where proof of identity is not required.
• Class 2 Class 2 certificates are issued to individuals and devices. Class 2 individual certificates are appropriate for digital signatures, encryption, and electronic access control in transactions where proof of identity based on information in the validating database is sufficient. Class 2 device certificates are appropriate for device authentication; message, software, and content integrity; and confidentiality encryption.
• Class 3 Class 3 certificates are issued to individuals, organizations, servers, devices, and administrators for CAs and root authorities (RAs). Class 3 individual certificates are appropriate for digital signatures, encryption, and access control in transactions where proof of identity must be assured. Class 3 server certificates are appropriate for server authentication; message, software, and content integrity; and confidentiality encryption.