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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">CERT may certainly opine on the whether email validation is a good idea. That’s their right. Even better would have been working with the appropriate standards
bodies to get their concerns addressed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">However, CERT defines a “vulnerability” as “defects that allow an attacker to violate an explicit (or implicit) security policy to achieve some impact (or consequence)”
[https://www.us-cert.gov/report]. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">By definition, a CA that is operating in accordance with relevant standards and its publicly stated Certificate Policy Statement has no “defect” that allows
an attacker to violate their policy. They’re doing exactly what they said they should do.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">When CERT issues vulnerability reports that don’t even meet CERT’s own definition of what a vulnerability is, that’s not helpful.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">-Tim<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"">From:</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif""> public-bounces@cabforum.org [mailto:public-bounces@cabforum.org]
<b>On Behalf Of </b>Ryan Sleevi<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Monday, March 30, 2015 11:04 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> Adriano Santoni - Actalis S.p.A.<br>
<b>Cc:</b> CERT.org; CABFPub<br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [cabfpub] Non-whitelisted email addresses used for DV issuing<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p>OK. So we can conclude CERT has reached a different conclusion than browsers and CAs.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>I don't believe CERT's reply is at all consistent with other validation methods - that is, it would seem they have decided to take issue with DV in general, as compared to other validation methods. That is certainly their prerogative, but not a conclusion
I share at all.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>At least it would be more helpful for them to list their perceived vulnerability as accepting email validation at all, rather than conflating the issue with non-whitelisted addresses.<o:p></o:p></p>
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