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What is an EV SSL Certificate?
EV SSL Certificates are the most trusted and strict type of SSL certificates. The greatest level of trust and safety that a website can ensure is from these kinds of certificates, since getting one entails a detailed checking process.
What is necessary is that businesses prove their legal identity and that they are currently operating before they can get an EV SSL certificate.
With an EV SSL certificate, an organizational name becomes prominent in the browser, mostly within the address bar.
It serves to let visitors know that the website is authentic, valid, and trustworthy. It is even more important for those business entities that require trust, such as online stores, banks, and large companies.
What is a Wildcard SSL Certificate?
The Wildcard SSL Certificate is designed to protect a single main domain and all its subdomains with a single certificate.
This type of SSL certificate is suitable for organizations with multiple subdomains. They would not have to buy separate certificates for each subdomain.
For example, if your main domain is example.com, a Wildcard SSL will protect other sub-domains such as blog.example.com, store.example.com, and support.example.com.
Purpose of EV SSL Certificates
An Extended Validation (EV) SSL certificate builds trust for users by offering the highest level of proof of a website. The EV certificate undergoes strict checking in which the CA ensures that the organization asking for the certificate is real.
The checking involves looking at legal documents, checking the physical address, and verifying the identity of the business.
One of the main advantages of EV certificates is that they display visual indicators in browsers, such as a green address bar or the company name next to the URL.
These indicators tell users that the website is real and safe. These indicators help users feel sure that they are using a reliable website.
These are some of the reasons why EV certificates are suitable for sites dealing with sensitive information, such as online stores, banks, and government sites.
They really require user trust. This can also curb phishing attacks since only true businesses can obtain these certificates.
Purpose of Wildcard SSL Certificates
Most often, a Wildcard SSL certificate is used to secure a large number of sub-domains under one domain.
This simply means that with one single Wildcard certificate, you are able to protect your main domain—example.com—and all the sub-domains, such as blog.example.com, store.example.com.
The latter is very useful for businesses with many subdomains, as it makes SSL management simpler and more economical.
Wildcard certificates are wonderful for websites that add a new subdomain very often or are growing very quickly, and don’t have to obtain individual SSL certificates for each new subdomain.
They are very versatile, and they help businesses save money since a company needs to buy and maintain one certificate for all its subdomains.
Why is an EV Wildcard SSL Certificate not possible?
An EV Wildcard SSL certificate is not possible due to the following key reasons:
Stringent Validation Requirements:
An Extended Validation (EV) SSL certificate involves separate and strict validation on every domain. If wildcard functionality were permitted, this requirement as to subdomains would be circumvented, which is counterproductive based on the goal of maximum trust and authentication in the EV standard.
Security Risks with Wildcards:
The Wildcard type of SSL certificates works automatically to protect all subdomains of the main domain. In case one subdomain is violated, all the others created under that certificate are also affected, which is a severe issue for EV certificates, as these are most trusted by visitors.
Purpose Misalignment
EV SSL certificates emphasize discrete, high validation for one domain. Wildcards, on the other hand, focus on flexibility to obtain several subdomains and thus have a completely different approach to the problem.
Industry Standards Prohibition
The CA/Browser Forum, which is in charge of managing SSL/TLS standards more closely, has banned EV wildcard certificates outright. To this end, EV certificates may retain their validation and security measures to exceptionalism that is free from compromise.
Preservation of Trust
The idea behind the EV certificates is to ensure that a particular domain is associated with the genuine company. Expanding this validation to subdomains that may not require individual verification weakens the kind of trust that EV certificates are intended to offer.
Alternative Options
An EV Wildcard SSL certificate cannot be created, but other options offer flexibility and strong validation.
Multi-Domain Wildcard SSL Certificate (SAN Wildcard)
A Multi-Domain Wildcard SSL certificate helps you protect several domains and subdomains with one certificate. This certificate is also called a SAN Wildcard (Subject Alternative Name). It is a middle-ground solution that lets you secure:
Many domains (such as example.com, example.net), Subdomains (such as sub.example.com, sub.example.net)
However, it’s worth noting that Multi-Domain Wildcard SSL certificates do not offer the same level of validation as an EV SSL certificate.
These are available in Domain Validation (DV) or Organization Validation (OV) options, but they are not subjected to the same rigorous checks as an EV certificate.
Domain Validation (DV) Wildcard SSL Certificate
A DV Wildcard SSL certificate allows a number of subdomains to be secured under one certificate, but requires only the ownership verification of the domain.
DV Wildcard certificates are quicker and simpler to get than EV certificates, but they do not provide the same trust or confidence to users.
There is no detailed checking of the organization, so the user’s browser will only display the regular padlock and “HTTPS” sign without extra trust signals.
Organization Validation (OV) Wildcard SSL Certificate
An OV Wildcard SSL certificate achieves a balance between the domains validated and the organization. The certificate is issued by the CA after ensuring the existence of the requesting legal organization.
While it provides more trust than an OV Wildcard, it does not have the same level of validation as provided by an EV certificate.
It is a good choice for businesses that have more validation than what’s offered by a DV certificate but do not need all the trust of an EV certificate.
EV SSL Certificates and Wildcard SSL Certificates serve different, yet important purposes in website security, catering to distinct business needs.
Conclusion
An EV Wildcard SSL isn’t feasible, but alternatives like Multi-Domain Wildcard SSLs offer flexibility and robust security. Visit Certera to find the perfect solution for your needs!
