{"id":826,"date":"2020-04-07T10:56:00","date_gmt":"2020-04-07T10:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sectigostore.com\/blog\/?p=826"},"modified":"2025-04-28T12:27:41","modified_gmt":"2025-04-28T12:27:41","slug":"what-is-pki-a-laymans-guide-to-public-key-infrastructure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sectigostore.com\/blog\/what-is-pki-a-laymans-guide-to-public-key-infrastructure\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is PKI? A Layman\u2019s Guide to Public Key Infrastructure"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019ve wondered what public key infrastructure (PKI) is, you\u2019ve come to the right place. It\u2019s something that protects our money, privacy and so much more. The crazy part, most people don\u2019t even know what it is\u2026<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

So, you\u2019re finally ready to ask. You\u2019ve put this off, we\nknow. We understand, it\u2019s a big topic. It\u2019s okay though. We\u2019ll walk you through\nthis one. And before you know it, you\u2019ll be chatting with your friends at work\nand dropping knowledge when someone asks, \u201cWhat is PKI?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting Straight to the Point: What Is PKI?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before we dive into a deeper, more layered explanation, here is a quick definition of PKI: Public key infrastructure is something that establishes and manages public key encryption and digital signature services.<\/strong> For public key encryption to work, digital keys and certificates need to be created, stored, distributed, managed, revoked, used and so on. PKI allows for encryption to do all of these things with software, hardware, protocols, policies, processes and services. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want a quick but still more detailed explanation, check out our article on PKI basics<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want a deeper, more layered explanation of PKI, keep\non reading!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Answering \u201cWhat is Public Key Infrastructure?\u201d \u2014 A 100,000-Foot Perspective<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Like we said, we get it, this topic is tough. Just so we\ndon\u2019t undermine the complexity of PKI, let\u2019s start with a riddle. What\u2019s\nsomething that no can see but helps other\u2019s see what can\u2019t be seen? You guessed\nit, PKI! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a way, that\u2019s quite the accurate description. Think of public\nkey infrastructure as the almighty helping hand. The helping hand is there for anything\nand everything. PKI is no different. It\u2019s there no matter what is asked of it. PKI\nis the helping hand that makes online banking, paying taxes online, shopping on\nAmazon and so much more safe and secure! It\u2019s there to help in anyway it can!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a facilitator of sorts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, maybe that didn\u2019t help entirely (maybe we\u2019re not as\nhelpful as PKI), but let\u2019s bring you down from 100,000 feet to 50,000 feet. We\ncan do this with a little backstory about encryption, keys, and Julius Caesar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The PKI Flashback: The PKI Story Starts Almost 4,000 Years Ago<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yes, we\u2019re doing a flashback like Marty McFly. Or was it a\nflash forward? Hard to say when he\u2019s going BACK to the future\u2026 I digress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To truly understand PKI, you need to know some backstory.\nThere have been signs of encryption dating all the way back to 1900 BC. Maybe\nthe most famous example of encryption history is that of Caesar\u2019s Cipher around\n40-50 BC. Caesar used a sort of shift cipher that scrambled letters around by\njumping ahead a fixed number of places in the alphabet. This proved to be an\nexcellent tactic to protect his messages from enemies who have intercepted\nthem.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This brings us to conventional (aka symmetric) encryption. Sticking\nwith what Caesar did \u2014 basically, he knew what the key was to decode his\nmessages, which means the person who was receiving the message needed to know\nwhat the key was as well. That\u2019s how conventional encryption works. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s another example of conventional encryption. Let\u2019s say\nDaffy Duck and Yosemite Sam didn\u2019t want Bugs Bunny to know they\u2019re working\ntogether. How could they pass secret messages without letting Bugs find out?\nThere would need to be a way to encrypt messages and a key to decrypt them, but\nthe problem Daffy and Yosemite would run into is that they\u2019d need to a way to\npass the key. They can\u2019t meet in person because that would ruin their plan of\nsecrecy. They also couldn\u2019t pass the key with the message because that would\nalso make this process utterly useless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looks like Bugs got them again. The problem Daffy and\nYosemite face is figuring out how two people in different places can agree on\nan encryption key to exchange encrypted messages. Now, if Daffy and Yosemite\nhad PKI at their disposal, then they just might be able to pull one off this\ntime.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To Answer, \u201cWhat is PKI?\u201d You Need to Understand Public Key Encryption<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As opposed to conventional encryption, which uses one key, PKI enables what we call public key encryption<\/a> (aka asymmetric encryption) to be able to use two keys. One key encrypts while the other decrypts. The two keys used are the public key and the private key. The keys are aptly named as one key is available to the public and the other one is private. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using the public key encryption method, Daffy could encrypt\nhis message using Yosemite\u2019s public key. That way, only the person with the\nprivate key (Yosemite) could decrypt the message. Even if it was intercepted,\nBugs couldn\u2019t get anything valuable out of the message because the ciphertext\nwould look like gibberish without the decryption key. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

An impressive method for sure. Maybe the only thing more\nimpressive is that I somehow turned Bugs Bunny into a hacker. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now take this concept and apply it to two computers trying\nto communicate securely. With PKI, these two computers can basically speak to\neach other, agree, share keys and ultimately decrypt the message that was in\ntransit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, I think that covers PKI from the 50,000-foot perspective.\nWe\u2019re going to bring you to about 10,000 feet for the rest of the way through,\nwhich will leave you with a thorough understanding of PKI, and ultimately\nanswer the question \u201cwhat is PKI?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who Are the Key Players Involved in PKI?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are three main elements to PKI:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. The key pair<\/strong>, which we just covered is one of them. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Certificate authorities (CAs)<\/strong> are another. CAs are trusted third-party bodies that develop and manage digital certificates. Trusted is the key word there as CAs hold the prestigious honor of being trusted to issue certificates by meeting ultra-strict criteria established by the CA\/Browser Forum<\/a> (CA\/B Forum), an independent group largely made up of representatives from the world\u2019s largest browsers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Digital certificates<\/strong>, which are created by the CAs, are the final element. A digital certificate acts as the passports of PKI. Just as you need a passport to travel internationally, you need a digital certificate to travel through PKI. That\u2019s because a PKI digital certificate carries documentation that details information about the key and its owner. It also comes with a signature from the CA, similar to a passport coming with a signoff from the traveler\u2019s government.  <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    These three elements (or \u201cplayers,\u201d as the title says) make\nup the inner workings of this infrastructure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Five Ways That PKI Helps Us in Our Everyday Lives<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    As we said in the opener, PKI is something that protects our\nmoney, privacy, and so much more. It touches our lives nearly every day. So,\nhow does this invisible infrastructure help so many people? It facilitates and\nsupports safety and security in nearly every facet of digital communications. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Here are five specific areas PKI does this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Web Security <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    In today\u2019s digital world, it\u2019s vital we are able to interact with websites without having our interactions recorded or intercepted. PKI allows for HTTPS<\/a> to happen. The secure HTTPS protocol allows for browsers and web servers (aka websites) to safely and securely communicate. To have an HTTPS website, you need an SSL\/TLS certificate<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    By installing an SSL certificate on your website<\/a>, you receive the aforementioned public and private key pair. The private key is securely housed in the web server, so that a user\u2019s browser can identity a website (server) as legitimate. This allows for users to safely shop, submit personal information, and pay while browsing websites. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Email Security <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Email is another key area that PKI touches. PKI provides the framework for emails to safely travel from one person to another. This process is known as secure\/multipurpose internet mail extension (S\/MIME<\/a>). S\/MIME certificates<\/a> are used to encrypt the email message and digitally sign it, so that the sender and their message can be authenticated. This also helps to prevent bad guys from tampering with emails. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Secure Messaging <\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Imagine getting on\nWhatsApp and feeling like you can\u2019t send a message to your friends without\nsomeone intercepting and reading it. It\u2019s a scary thought. PKI makes it more\nsecure to use messaging services like WhatsApp with the use of encryption. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Code\/App Signing <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    So, PKI covers secure website communications, email and\nmessaging. What else does it cover? Well, let\u2019s say you download an app or\nsoftware, and once you download it, it asks for you to make an account, put\nyour credit card number on there to buy additional services and for more\nprivate information. But how can you trust this? By software developers and\npublishers using code signing certificates, that\u2019s how!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    These certificates ensure the developer\/publisher of the\nfile is who they say they are. PKI enables the code signing certificates<\/a> to\nauthenticate who the publisher is using public key encryption. It also helps to\nprevent tampering once the software or application is signed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Document Signing <\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    In today\u2019s digital world, it would be completely inefficient to physically sign every document that requires you to do so. That is what brings us to document signing. PKI enables users to electronically sign documents with the ability to prove to the receiver that the signed document is coming from a legitimate source. This happens with document signing certificates<\/a>. And PKI isn\u2019t just offering a secure way to digitally sign documents, it\u2019s also saving you from a lot of hand cramps.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A Final Answer to the Question \u201cWhat is PKI?\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    From Bugs Bunny to Marty McFly and Julius Caesar to HTTPS,\nwe\u2019ve reached the end of our story. PKI is so much more than a software or\nproduct. PKI is a fully functional everything<\/em> that allows for all of us\nto safely and securely operate in the digital world. With encryption and\nauthentication, it governs this world allowing messages to travel, documents\nand downloads to be trusted and above all us, PKI allows us to enjoy the\nbeautiful world behind our computer screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For something so largely unknown, it\u2019s a pretty remarkable\nthing. So, next time someone asks, \u201cwhat is PKI,\u201d make sure you don\u2019t skip a\nsingle \u201ckey\u201d detail.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    If you\u2019ve wondered what public key infrastructure (PKI) is, you\u2019ve come to the right place. It\u2019s something that protects our money, privacy and so much more. The crazy part, most…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":838,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,9],"tags":[54,53],"class_list":["post-826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cyber-security","category-encryption","tag-pki","tag-public-key-encryption","post-with-tags"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat Is PKI? A Layman\u2019s Guide to Public Key Infrastructure - InfoSec Insights<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Not sure "what is PKI?" 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