GeoTrust Launches Reissuance Program for SSL Server Certificates

WELLESLEY, Mass.—August 30, 2004 —GeoTrust, Inc., a leader in identity and security solutions for e-business and the world's second largest certificate authority, today announced its new certificate reissuance policy which allows free reissues for all of its customers' secure sockets layer (SSL) server certificates. The new program, which replaces GeoTrust's previous seven-day reissue policy, applies to all valid GeoTrust SSL certificates.

"Our large network of channel partners operates in a highly competitive market, where delivering excellent customer support is a crucial component of their success. They rely on us to recommend solutions that meet their customers exacting standards," said David Woroch, vice president of sales, Tucows Inc., a GeoTrust reseller partner.  "This reissue program is just the latest of many benefits that demonstrates GeoTrust's commitment to offering products that provide continuous high levels of network and Web security." 

GeoTrust has quickly grown into a position of market leadership because it issues 128-bit SSL certificates in 10-minutes or less, at a fraction of the price of the industry leader, VeriSign. GeoTrust is now extending this technology-leadership position to include self-service reissuance throughout the validity period of an SSL certificate.

Customers may need to re-provision their certificates under the following circumstances:

When upgrading or changing server software or operating platform
If changing hosting company or ISP If an existing private key has been lost, destroyed or otherwise inadvertently overwritten In most cases, the new certificate is issued within minutes using GeoTrust's patent-pending automated "factory" approach to identity certification and digital certificate issuance. To qualify for reissuance, all existing core certificate details must remain the same (including domain name and company name), and customers will need to generate a new Certificate Signing Request (CSR). Once the CSR is generated and customers have entered the required information via GeoTrust's Web interface, the certificate is immediately issued. The new certificate will be valid from the date of reissue until the original expiration date of the current certificate.

"Threats such as online fraud and identity theft make it critical for e-businesses to maintain a secure infrastructure at all times - even a momentary lapse can cause major security issues," said Joan Lockhart, vice president of marketing, GeoTrust. "Web security should never be compromised because a certificate is lost or needs to be moved from one server to another. Our customers need to be able to obtain replacement certificates quickly and easily, and this program meets that need."

About GeoTrust, Inc.

GeoTrust, Inc., a leader in Identity and Trust Services, helps organizations of all sizes secure e-commerce transactions, trusted identities and fully managed trusted environments for conducting e-business. GeoTrust's Web Security Services offer hosting providers and businesses with world-class digital certificates for fast transaction security and patent-pending smart-seals to ensure a trusted identity on the web. GeoTrust also offers managed security services for large enterprises. With more than 70,000 companies in over 140 countries using its technology for transaction security, GeoTrust is the second largest digital certificate provider in the world. GeoTrust can be reached at www.geotrust.com or 800-944-0492