CSIS 103 Introduction to the Internet
Case Study 6

Researching Digital Certificates

Chuck Berry has decided he wants to sell MP3 files of his songs on the Internet and is asking you to help him make sure that users who purchase songs from his Web site will be able to securely log on and submit sensitive information like credit card numbers to his Web site without the fear of having their information stolen by Internet predators. In order to do this you need to explain to Chuck how he can use the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol to secure user log on and transactions.

Go to Verisign.com to learn more about digital certificate products that Verisign has to offer businesses who want to use SSL. Chuck will need to know how to obtain a digital certificate for his Web server and how it works.

When you have finished gathering the information on the Verisign site go to Thawte.com and use the information on their Web site to to learn more about digital certificate products that Thawte offers to businesses who want to use SSL.

Then write a research report of about 300 words outlining some basic information about SSL and how to get a digital certificate. Evaluate the products offered by Verisign and Thawte and recommend one to Chuck. Be sure to include the reasons for your recommendation (hint: the cost of a certificate is a factor, but it should not be the only reason for your choice).

Using the Student Blogs link in the Course menu create a new blog in the CS6 Security Blog and write your research report there following the criteria set below in the Instructor's Scorecard.

Instructor's Scorecard

  • Student concisely described how digital certificates work using SSL = 20 points.
  • Student described how to obtain a digital certificate = 20 points.
  • Student identified which digital certificate provider they recommended purchasing from and which level certificate would be appropriate for Chuck's needs = 20 points.
  • In addition to price, the student gave several valid reasons for the level of digital certificate they selected and why they selected the digital certificate provider they recommended = 20 points.
  • Student used good grammar and had no spelling errors in their research report = 20 points.