What is the primary role of Public Key Infrastructure (PKI)?

The primary role of Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is to manage entities involved in digital certificates. PKI is a framework that facilitates secure communication by providing a set of policies, technologies, and standards that govern digital certificates. These digital certificates are essential for establishing trust between parties in an online environment.

PKI encompasses the management of the entire lifecycle of digital certificates, including their creation, storage, distribution, and revocation. It includes components such as certificate authorities (CAs) that issue and verify certificates, registration authorities (RAs) that handle the identification and authentication of entities requesting certificates, and repositories for storing and sharing certificates.

Understanding this framework is crucial, as it lays the groundwork for various security protocols, including SSL/TLS, which secure electronic transactions. By effectively managing digital certificates, PKI helps ensure the authenticity and integrity of communication and transactions over the internet. This makes it a fundamental part of many cybersecurity strategies.