Class 3 Digital Signature Certificate

What is Class 3 Digital Signature Certificate ?

A Class 3 Digital Signature Certificate is of a higher level as it is issued only after the registrant’s identity verification has been done by a Registration Authority. Class 3 digital signature certificate is more secure in comparison to class 2 certificate. This is the safest of all certificates. It is used in matters of high security and safety. It is mainly used in online trading and e-commerce, where a huge amount of money or highly confidential information is involved. If you opt for class 3 certificate, all applications which are created for Class 2, should be able to recognize your certificates. Any organization that is looking to apply for any Government e Tender needs to have a Class 3 Digital Signature Certificate registered in the name of a representative who is authorized to submit online offers for e-Tendering applications.

Assurance Level:

This certificate will be issued to individuals as well as organizations. As these are high assurance certificates, primarily intended for e-commerce applications, they shall be issued to individuals only on their personal (physical) appearance before the Certifying Authorities.

Applicability:

This level is relevant to environments where threats to data are high or the consequences of the failure of security services are high. This may include very high value transactions or high levels of fraud risk.

Following are the main functions of Class 3 certificates

• E-tendering

• Patent and trademark e-filing

• MCA e-filing

• Customs e-filing

• E-procurement

• E-biding

• E-auction, etc.

E-tendering

Class 3 Digital Signature Certificates are needed for e-tendering, which is a procurement process that is conducted online. The aspects where this comes into play include:

Contract download.

Evaluation of tenders (May or may not involve e-auctions).

Supplier registration/expression of interest.

Submission of bid document.