DALLAS, March 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- What most consumers don't realize is that the use of public key infrastructure is universal in today's most routine tasks. Online bank transfers. Simple border crossing via e-Passports. Basic Internet transactions. That same technology is the foundation of Entrust Unified Communications Certificates.

In collaboration with key industry leaders, Entrust, Inc. offers Entrust Unified Communications Certificates, which secure and authenticate communication between mail servers (internally between the Exchange servers, and between Microsoft(R) Exchange servers and other mail servers). In addition, administrators can enable the new Auto Discover provisioning feature provided by Microsoft Office Outlook(R) 2007 and Outlook Web Access through Microsoft Exchange Server.

Unified Communications refers to an industry trend of bringing multiple communication methods together into a unified management and usage context. The technology serves as a versatile management system that affords users the ability to track and respond to a range of communication options (e.g., e-mail, voicemail, instant message, fax, etc.).

"Protecting all communication, no matter how it is implemented or by whom, is a vital necessity for any security-conscious organization. Entrust Unified Communications Certificates provide useful flexibility and interoperability for protection of Unified Communications deployments," said Entrust Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Bill Conner.

The ability to leverage public key infrastructure to solve a variety of business challenges is one of the latest trends in digital security. This new strategy, coined "PKI 2.0," can help organizations answer specific security obstacles with a trusted technology that is used across the world -- even in the most common, everyday implementations.

"The development of Unified Communications Certificates is a prime example of evolving public key infrastructure technology to easily and transparently address the business challenges of today, and the future of online communication," said Michael Osterman, president of Osterman Research. "Having the capability to access and manage multiple channels of communication safely and confidently will serve as a useful resource in consumer and enterprise implementations."

To support industry-leading products, Entrust worked closely with the Microsoft Corporation to verify compatibility with a variety of the most innovative communication products available today, including Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 and Microsoft Live Communications Server. Entrust Unified Communications Certificates are suited for environments that typically need to encrypt communications across a wide range of protocols and domains, both internally and externally. This technology enables organizations to secure communications with large numbers of specific hosts and domains with a single certificate. Entrust Unified Communications Certificates specify which hosts and domains are to be protected, giving organizations greater control and better security.

"Secure online communications are pivotal in today's organizations," said Trevor Freeman, program manager for Domain Security in the Exchange Product Group at Microsoft. "The Exchange Server 2007 release includes enhancements in confidential messaging, operational efficiency and deployment that push the envelope of existing SSL certificate offerings. It has been a pleasure working with Entrust toward the release of their Unified Communications Certificates to help address the needs of our customers."

Entrust Unified Communications Certificates can help reduce upfront and ongoing management costs by using a single certificate on multiple customer servers. This not only helps limit upfront certificate costs, but also means organizations are only required to manage and renew a single certificate over time.

Unlike "wildcard" SSL certificates, Entrust Unified Communications Certificates are more secure because they specify exactly which hosts and domains are to be protected. Wildcard SSL certificates are configured to be used with a domain (e.g., company.com) and every domain server behind it (e.g., your.company.com, any.company.com, etc.). This tactic can prove cost-effective, but also risky since it is not possible to fully control where the certificate is used, or for what purpose. The certificate could potentially be used on unauthorized or even fraudulent sites within the same domain (e.g., phish.company.com).

Entrust Unified Communications Certificates have already been deployed on customers' Exchange Server 2007 servers and are available now for purchase through Entrust's Certificate Services Web site at http://www.entrust.net/.

About Entrust

Entrust, Inc. is a world leader in securing digital identities and information. Over 1,550 enterprises and government agencies in more than 60 countries use Entrust solutions to help secure the digital lives of their citizens, customers, employees and partners. Our proven software and services can help customers in achieving regulatory and corporate compliance, while helping to turn security challenges such as identity theft and e-mail security into business opportunities. For more information on how Entrust can help secure your digital life, please visit: http://www.entrust.com/.

Entrust is a registered trademark of Entrust, Inc. in the United States and certain other countries. In Canada, Entrust is a registered trademark of Entrust Limited. All Entrust product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of Entrust, Inc. or Entrust Limited. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

CONTACT: Brooke Hamilton, Media Relations of Entrust, Inc.,
+1-972-713-5915, brooke.hamilton@entrust.com

Web site: http://www.entrust.com/