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Some CAs issue end entity certificates directly from the root (i.e., signed using the root CA private key). This is not as secure as using an offline root and issuing certificates using a subordinate CA. | Some CAs issue end entity certificates directly from the root (i.e., signed using the root CA private key). This is not as secure as using an offline root and issuing certificates using a subordinate CA. | ||
=== Allowing external entities to operate | === Allowing external entities to operate subordinate CAs === | ||
Some CAs authorize external entities to operate their own CAs as subordinate CAs under the original CA's root. This raises concerns relating to whether or not such external entities are audited in a manner equivalent to the root CA, as well as what legal and technical arrangements constrain the external entities. | Some CAs authorize external entities to operate their own CAs as subordinate CAs under the original CA's root. This raises concerns relating to whether or not such external entities are audited in a manner equivalent to the root CA, as well as what legal and technical arrangements constrain the external entities. | ||
Where a root from a CA signs an intermediate certificate used by an external CA to then sign subsidiary intermediate certificates or subscriber certificates, that situation needs to be disclosed. That disclosure should include documentation of what requirements are imposed by the CA owning the root upon the operations of external CAs. Further, the public audit report for the CA owning the root must indicate how and when the operations of the external CAs have been reviewed for compliance with those documented requirements. | |||
You must provide a clear list and description of the subordinate CAs that are operated by external third parties, and an explanation as to how the CP/CPS and audits ensure the third parties are in compliance with Mozilla's CA Certificate Policy requirements as per the [https://wiki.mozilla.org/CA:SubordinateCA_checklist Subordinate CA Checklist.] | |||
=== Distributing generated private keys in PKCS#12 files === | === Distributing generated private keys in PKCS#12 files === |