Patent ID: 7584351
Filing Date: 2009-09-01
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A method of transferring digital certificates, from a digital-certificate transferring apparatus, to a communications apparatus which is a communications counterpart of the digital-certificate transferring apparatus, comprising: authenticating the communications counterpart using a common certificate being a digital certificate without apparatus-identifying information, and transferring a normal certificate being a digital certificate with information identifying said communications counterpart to the communications counterpart when the authenticating succeeds; and receiving a first normal certificate, at an address of the digital-certificate transferring apparatus corresponding to the first normal certificate, from said communications counterpart, and when, based on said received first normal certificate, it is determined to be necessary to transfer a second normal certificate to the communications counterpart for the communications counterpart to use when communicating with the digital-certificate transferring apparatus, transferring to the communications counterpart the second normal certificate along with the information identifying the communications counterpart and an address of the digital-certificate transferring apparatus corresponding to a second normal certificate for the communications counterpart to use when communicating with the digital-certificate transferring apparatus, said second normal certificate being a different type than said first normal certificate.