What are the core components of a PKI system?

A PKI system consists of foundational elements that establish digital trust.

Core components include:

  • Certificate Authority (CA): Issues and manages digital certificates
  • Registration Authority (RA): Verifies identity before certificate issuance
  • Public and Private Keys: Enable encryption and authentication
  • Digital Certificates: Bind identity to public keys
  • Certificate Revocation Lists (CRL) or OCSP: Manage revoked certificates

Together, these components ensure secure authentication, encrypted communication and trusted identity verification across digital environments.