[cabfpub] Participation in the CA/Browser Forum S/MIME Certificate Working Group

[Bruce Morton]

Entrust intends to participate in the S/MIME working group as a Certificate Issuer.  Voting representatives will be Bruce Morton, Chris Bailey and Kirk Hall.

Thanks, Bruce.

-----Original Message-----
From: Public <public-bounces at cabforum.org> On Behalf Of Stephen Davidson via Public
Sent: Wednesday, July 8, 2020 3:36 PM
To: CABforum1 <public at cabforum.org>
Cc: smcwg-public at cabforum.org
Subject: [EXTERNAL][cabfpub] Participation in the CA/Browser Forum S/MIME Certificate Working Group

WARNING: This email originated outside of Entrust Datacard.
DO NOT CLICK links or attachments unless you trust the sender and know the content is safe.

Participation in the S/MIME Certificate Working Group

The ballot "Forum-14 version 2" recently passed forming the charter of the CA/Browser Forum's S/MIME Certificate Working Group (SMCWG).  We welcome applicants with an interest in S/MIME for membership.

The SMCWG will work on requirements applicable to Certification Authorities that issue S/MIME digital certificates used to sign, verify, encrypt, and decrypt email.  See https://cabforum.org/smcwg-charter/    A primary deliverable will address:

-       Verification of control over email addresses
-       Key management and certificate lifecycle
-       Certificate profiles for S/MIME certificates and Issuing CA certificates
-       CA operational practices, physical/logical security, etc.

In addition, the SMCWG may also address identity validation for natural persons and legal entities in the context of S/MIME certificates.

The SMCWG will provide a publicly-accessible mailing list; see: https://cabforum.org/mailman/listinfo/smcwg-public.  Only members may post to the list.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIES

There are four membership categories in the S/MIME Certificate Working Group:

-       Certificate Issuers are Certification Authorities that issue publicly trusted S/MIME certificates treated as valid by a Certificate Consumer Member. This group can attend all meetings and vote in the working group.
-       Certificate Consumers are entities that produce and maintain a mail user agent (web-based or application based) or operate an email service provider that processes S/MIME certificates. This group can attend all meetings and vote in the working group.
-       Interested Parties: Anyone that has an interest in participating in the working group. This group can attend all telephone meetings but cannot vote. They may be invited to face to face meetings by the Chair.
-       Associate Members: Organizations that add value to the working group as determined by the group (see: https://cabforum.org/liaisons/). This category may also include organizations that intend to be in categories 1 or 2 but have not completed all the required steps. This group can attend all meetings but cannot vote.

The CA/Browser Forum bylaws require that all members execute and submit the IPR Agreement.  See https://cabforum.org/ipr-policy/

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
INSTRUCTIONS FOR NEW MEMBERS

The CA/Browser Forum welcomes new applicants with an interest in S/MIME for membership in the SMCWG.  There is no cost to join.  New applicants should provide the following information by email to questions at cabforum.org:

1.      Category under which the applicant wishes to apply to the SMCWG
2.      Organization name
3.      URL of the applicant's main Web site
4.      Completed IPR Agreement
5.      Names and email addresses of designated representatives who will participate
6.      Emergency contact information for security issues related to certificate trust
7.      Certificate Issuers must supply the following additional information:
        -       URL of the current qualifying audit report
        -       Links or references to issued end-entity certificates that demonstrate them being treated as valid by a Certificate Consumer Member

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
INSTRUCTIONS FOR EXISTING MEMBERS

Existing CA/Browser Forum members must also declare their intent to participate in writing to questions at cabforum.org with evidence they meet the criteria and the names/email addresses of designated representatives who will participate.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
NEXT STEPS

Once expressions of interest are gathered, the SMCWG acting chairperson will convene a meeting tentatively scheduled for July 22, 2020 at 11 AM EST whose agenda will include:
-       Adopting a list of initial members from the list of proposed, qualifying applicants in conformance with the SMCWG Charter
-       Appointing a Chair, Vice Chair, and Webmaster for the SMCWG
-       Outline the goals and deliverables for SMCWG

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Many thanks for your interest in the S/MIME Certificate Working Group, Stephen Davidson, acting chairperson https://cabforum.org/working-groups/smime-certificate-wg/

_______________________________________________
Public mailing list
Public at cabforum.org
https://lists.cabforum.org/mailman/listinfo/public