[Servercert-wg] [EXTERNAL] Request for a Moratorium on New Certificate Consumer Members

[Ben Wilson]

Hi Paul,

These are all things that I would like to discuss with those of you who are
interested in helping to work on the membership requirements for
Certificate Consumers in the Server Certificate WG.  Those of you who are
interested, please send me email, and I'll set up a discussion.

Thanks,

Ben



On Thu, Apr 6, 2023 at 2:44 AM Paul van Brouwershaven <
Paul.vanBrouwershaven at entrust.com> wrote:

> Hi Ben,
>
> Here are some intial questions on your proposal.
>
> > That the Applicant develops and maintains its own code;
>
> Can you explain what you mean with this, I suppose that this does not mean
> that Microsoft can no longer be a Certificate Consumer as their browser is
> based on Chromium? What would this say about the usage of Open-Source code,
> etc.?
>
> > That the Applicant provides a browser for both mobile and desktop
> platforms;
>
> Certificate Consumers are Application Software Suppliers, and these are
> not limited to browsers. Why would a Certificate Consumer be required to
> provide an application for both mobile and desktop platforms?
>
> > That the Applicant has an installed user base of at least one tenth of a
> percent of all browsers in use globally (or some other comparable objective
> measurement);
>
> This means that the CA/Browser Forum is excluding all browsers that would
> like to enter the market until they have a sufficient user base, which
> might take years for new browsers, or a browser might even choose to
> operate in a niche market, for example in a specific demographic. While it
> is not required to be a Certificate Consumer Member to operate a browser or
> a root store, it feels like this is hindering new/niche browsers to
> participate on an equal level.
>
> > That the Applicant and its representatives have never been sanctioned
> for misconduct;
>
> Can you be more specific on "sanctioned for misconduct", for what and by
> who? This would currently mean that an employee of a certificate consumer
> would be sanctioned for life for any misconduct of any form, which can be
> irrelevant for the CA/Browser forum, we probably should provide a path to
> rehabilitation in the aftermath of misconduct in a way that recognizes the
> humanity of those involved.
>
> > That the Applicant has actively participated in the CA/Browser Forum as
> a non-voting Associate Member for at least one year.
>
> What is the purpose of this requirement, we don't have this requirement
> for certificate issuers.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Paul
>
> ------------------------------
> *From:* Servercert-wg <servercert-wg-bounces at cabforum.org> on behalf of
> Ben Wilson via Servercert-wg <servercert-wg at cabforum.org>
> *Sent:* Wednesday, April 5, 2023 18:30
> *To:* CA/B Forum Server Certificate WG Public Discussion List <
> servercert-wg at cabforum.org>
> *Subject:* [EXTERNAL] [Servercert-wg] Request for a Moratorium on New
> Certificate Consumer Members
>
> WARNING: This email originated outside of Entrust.
> DO NOT CLICK links or attachments unless you trust the sender and know the
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> ------------------------------
> All,
>
> I would like to request a moratorium on admitting new Certificate Consumer
> members to the Server Certificate Working Group until we have updated the
> criteria for membership of Certificate Consumers.
>
> The basis for this request is that we are in the process of developing
> better criteria for membership of Certificate Consumers. As noted during
> Face-to-Face meeting #58, our current requirement of “produc[ing] a
> software product intended for use by the general public for browsing the
> Web securely” lacks sufficient detail. Here are a few things we are
> considering that should be part of the membership criteria for Certificate
> Consumers:
>
> That the Applicant develops and maintains its own code;
>
> That the Applicant maintains its own root store;
>
> That the Applicant provides a browser for both mobile and desktop
> platforms;
>
> That the Applicant patches and delivers automatic updates of its browser
> software and root store;
>
> That the Applicant has publicly disclosed and documented processes for its
> users to report problems and to receive updates on the resolution of those
> problems;
>
> That the Applicant has an installed user base of at least one tenth of a
> percent of all browsers in use globally (or some other comparable objective
> measurement);
>
> That the Applicant employs developers and infosec-trained professionals;
>
> That the Applicant’s representatives regularly, consistently, and actively
> participate in relevant standards bodies such as the W3C, IETF, WHATWG, and
> OWASP;
>
> That the Applicant and its representatives have never been sanctioned for
> misconduct;
>
> That the Applicant has a good history of compliance with industry
> standards, including but not limited to HTML (https://platform.html5.org
> <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://platform.html5.org/__;!!FJ-Y8qCqXTj2!Ypa5WQHN2FbZUYE7Kjs1Lm1fL3oRd24UBjDyVngBxMiVnOxRmyqQtMzEv8h1TC7QxqctX2YlUpiW8WiW1vjLTb4ekfWZTPL5ytmb$>);
> CSS (https://www.w3.org/TR/css-2023/
> <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.w3.org/TR/css-2023/__;!!FJ-Y8qCqXTj2!Ypa5WQHN2FbZUYE7Kjs1Lm1fL3oRd24UBjDyVngBxMiVnOxRmyqQtMzEv8h1TC7QxqctX2YlUpiW8WiW1vjLTb4ekfWZTE2pxyS5$>);
> JavaScript, HTTPS/TLS, and the IETF RFCs, such as RFC 5280;
>
> That the Applicant’s browser passes at least certain percentages of
> various test suites (Acid Tests, Test 262 and web-platform-tests);
>
> That the Applicant has a published commitment to user security and
> privacy; and
>
> That the Applicant has actively participated in the CA/Browser Forum as a
> non-voting Associate Member for at least one year.
>
>
> Thanks,
>
>
> Ben
>
>
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