DigiCert
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cybersecurity |
| Founded | 2003 |
| Founder | Ken Bretschneider |
| Headquarters | Lehi , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Amit Sinha (CEO) |
| Products | Public key infrastructure (PKI), TLS/SSL certificates, digital certificates |
| Owner | Thoma Bravo, TA Associates, Clearlake Capital Group |
| Website | www |
DigiCert, Inc. is a cybersecurity firm based in Lehi, Utah that specializes in public key infrastructure (PKI) and the issuance of digital certificates, including TLS/SSL certificates. It operates worldwide as a certificate authority (CA).
History
Established in 2003 by entrepreneur Ken Bretschneider, DigiCert experienced a leadership transition in 2012 when Bretschneider stepped aside as CEO but retained his role as executive board chairman to guide corporate strategy. He was succeeded by Nicholas Hales, and later John Merrill took over the CEO position in 2016, serving until 2022.
DigiCert was among the original founders of the CA/Browser Forum in 2005 and collaborated with Microsoft in 2007 to introduce the industry’s inaugural multi-domain (SAN) certificate, thereby broadening its digital security product range.
The company increased its market presence in 2015 by acquiring Verizon Enterprise’s CyberTrust Enterprise SSL division, bolstering its offerings in high-assurance and extended validation (EV) TLS/SSL certificates. That year also saw private equity firm Thoma Bravo acquire a controlling interest, while TA Associates maintained minority ownership.
A pivotal acquisition took place in 2017 when DigiCert purchased Symantec’s TLS/SSL and PKI operations—including well-known brands such as GeoTrust, RapidSSL, Thawte, and VeriSign—for close to $1 billion. This acquisition addressed trust concerns raised by Google and Mozilla over Symantec-issued certificates, which represented about one-third of all TLS/SSL certificates on the internet. Leveraging its trusted status, DigiCert revalidated more than 550,000 organizational identities and issued upwards of 5 million replacement certificates by late 2018.
In 2018, DigiCert expanded its global footprint by acquiring QuoVadis, a Swiss trust services provider specializing in qualified digital certificates compliant with EU eIDAS regulations—aligning with DigiCert’s strategy to deliver comprehensive PKI solutions tailored to regional compliance requirements.
DigiCert launched DigiCert Labs in 2019 to foster innovation through research collaborations with Microsoft Research, Utimaco, ISARA, and Gemalto. The focus areas included post-quantum cryptography and machine learning technologies. That year also marked the release of the first post-quantum computing toolkit by the company.
Additionally in 2019, Clearlake Capital Group joined TA Associates in making a strategic growth investment in DigiCert, becoming equal partners committed to accelerating the company’s expansion and market reach.
DigiCert further extended its capabilities through acquisitions such as Mocana (specializing in IoT security) in January 2022 and DNS Made Easy (a DNS service provider) in June 2022—enhancing its product suite and global presence across diverse internet security sectors.
On October 19, 2022, Dr. Amit Sinha was appointed CEO and board member of DigiCert. Bringing over ten years of experience leading technology and innovation at cloud security leader Zscaler, Sinha assumed leadership with a focus on advancing DigiCert’s strategic growth.
Industry involvement
DigiCert maintains active participation in numerous influential industry and regulatory organizations to enhance its competitive positioning and market leadership. Key memberships include:
- Accredited Standards Committee X9 (ASC X9), dedicated to PKI standards development
- Aeronautical Mobile Airport Communication System (AeroMACS), providing Root CA services
- Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG)
- CA/Browser Forum
- CableLabs
- Connectivity Standards Alliance, where DigiCert Root CA is authorized for Matter Device Attestation
- CI+
- DirectTrust.org
- Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
- International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
- National Emergency Number Association (NENA-911), securing next-generation emergency communication systems
- National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) National Cyber Security Center of Excellence (NCCoE), collaborating on TLS certificate management and post-quantum cryptography initiatives
- Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE International), contributing to research on EV charging PKI infrastructure
This comprehensive engagement with industry bodies supports DigiCert’s business development objectives, enriches its product offerings, and solidifies its role as a global cybersecurity leader.
Criticism
DigiCert Inc. should not be confused with Digicert Sdn. Bhd, a Malaysian certificate authority whose browser trust was withdrawn due to inadequate key strength and substandard security measures.
During the 2017 acquisition of Symantec's certificate division, DigiCert encountered scrutiny stemming from browser apprehensions about the legitimacy of Symantec-issued certificates. DigiCert managed the migration of Symantec's clients to its own platform, ensuring uninterrupted certificate validity throughout the process.
In 2019, security expert Scott Helme uncovered nearly $1 million worth of extended validation certificates that needed revocation because of inaccurate data, with a significant portion issued by DigiCert.
DigiCert faced criticism in 2022 for endorsing the Qualified Website Authentication Certificate (QWAC) framework—akin to Extended Validation certificates—which sparked industry concerns regarding potential erosion of trust in digital certificate systems.