Protection profiles (PP) according to the Common Criteria certification scheme define the requirements for information technology security functions. The eIDAS Protection Profile EN 419 221-5 was certified by an accredited evaluation laboratory in late 2017 and approved by the EU member states earlier this year. With this Protection Profile, CEN standardizes security requirements for cryptographic modules being used as Qualified Signature Creation Device (QSCD) according to the eIDAS regulation.
Overview of eIDAS use cases supported by the certified Utimaco CryptoServer CP5 HSM (Source: Utimaco)
Certified security for a wide range of use cases
The principal aim of the eIDAS regulation is to facilitate a true digital single market in Europe.
The related services for electronic identification and trust services lend themselves to a variety of use cases. These include
- strong website authentication and qualified certificates for sealing communications
based on the new PSD2 regulation for the banking and financial services industry,
- electronic seals for businesses to prove the origin and integrity of data and documents
issued by them,
- electronic signatures created either locally by the signatory, or remotely by a Trust Service Provider (TSP) on behalf of the signatory. In the latter case, this involves a Signature Activation Module (SAM) supported by a Hardware Security Module to build a Qualified Signature Creation Device for server signing.
New business opportunities with existing and new partners
For Utimaco business partners, this recent certification opens up a wide range of business opportunities, among which remote signing solutions. German-based IT service provider
Bank-Verlag, together with software developer achelos and Utimaco, is developing a Signature
Activation Module for banking applications. The service enables bank customers to generate
online signatures remotely and speeds up and simplifies processes such as signing contracts,
opening an account or issuing insurance policies. Ascertia, a global provider of digital signature creation and verification solutions, will be using the Utimaco CP5 HSM within its ADSS SAM Appliance, a remote QSCD currently undergoing CC EAL4+ certification against EN419 241-2. There is great market interest in the powerful combination of Ascertia software working with Utimaco HSMs to deliver eIDAS compliant remote signing. “With eIDAS, the European Commission is looking to stimulate the digital market in Europe,”
says Malte Pollmann, CEO of Utimaco. “Being the first vendor certified according to Protection
Profile EN 419 221-5, Utimaco helps pave the way for compliant and highly secure trust
services. These ambitions are reflected in a number of current and upcoming partner projects.”Proof of concept with the CryptoServer CP5 simulator. Several companies have already made use of the CryptoServer CP5 simulator for testing purposes in the past months. One of these is Halcom, a provider for digital banking solutions based in Slovenia. Having extensively tested the CP5 HSM’s functionalities with the help of the simulator, Halcom is now able to kick-start the implementation of CryptoServer CP5 into its solution and provide its customers with both secure and compliant trust services. Luka Ribičič, Head of Halcom-CA, notes: “To be able to offer our clients eIDAS-compliant solutions, cooperating with a trustworthy HSM provider was crucial. The CryptoServer CP5 simulator as well as the affordable price point were key factors in our decision for Utimaco.”