Internet security is a fundamental issue for our experience on the web, with the purpose of protecting our data and the systems we use. Within this entire ecosystem of mechanisms to achieve this, are the so-called Digital Certificates. If you have had to do any online procedure from the Public Administration, it is likely that you have heard of them. In that sense, We want to show you the steps to follow to install a Digital Certificate in Windows through the two available procedures.
If you need to enter the Treasury or the DGT, but you don't know how to add the Digital Certificate to your computer after downloading it, here we are going to tell you everything you need to know.
What is a digital certificate?
As we mentioned before, Internet security is an important issue for the experience of any user and much more at this time, when there is the possibility of carrying out all kinds of procedures.. This implies that the systems can effectively validate that the user who makes use of the service is who they say they are. This is where the so-called Digital Certificates come into play, offering the possibility of meeting this need in the best way.
We can define Digital Certificates as electronic documents aimed at presenting information about a person, entity or organization, to access a certain service.. For example, if you want to carry out a procedure at the Treasury, you will need to have a Digital Certificate on your computer so that the system in question can verify that, in effect, the correct citizen is carrying out the process.
This is the reason why you need to install one on your computer if you want to save yourself from visiting these offices and do everything you can through the internet.
Steps to install a Digital Certificate in Windows
Installing a Digital Certificate in Windows will not represent a challenge and also, it will only take a few minutes.. To begin, you will need to have the certificate to be installed downloaded to your computer, whose format must be .PFX or .P12 and follow the steps below:
- Double click on the certificate.
- Choose if you want to install a Digital Certificate only for your user or for the whole team. The most recommended, for security reasons, is to do it only for your user.
- Check that the correct certificate has been chosen.
- Enter the password that you previously configured, during the download of the certificate.
- Select the default store to save the certificate.
- Review the summary to validate that everything is correct.
- Click on finish to complete the integration of the certificate to the system.
In this way, in less than a couple of minutes, you will have your Digital Certificate ready to access the service you need and carry out your procedures.
The Certificate Management Tool
Another way to install a Digital Certificate in Windows is by relying on the tool that the operating system incorporates for its administration and management. From there, we can not only do the installation, but also see the ones that we have previously incorporated and remove them if necessary.
If you want to install your certificate from here, follow these steps:
- Press the key combination Windows + R.
- Enter the command certmgr.msc and press Enter.
- Enter the Personal folder.
- Go into the Certificates folder.
- Click on an empty space on the right side of the window.
- Click on «All tasks«.
- Choose "Import«.
- Click on «Accept» in the window that is displayed.
- Click in "Browse» to locate the certificate you want to install.
- Continue with the same steps from the previous process.
It is a much longer procedure, but it is worth knowing in order to have all the possible ways available when installing a Digital Certificate. It should be noted that there are other certificate formats that can be incorporated directly into the browser, however, this is not the case of the ones we obtain for procedures with the online Public Administration.
This security mechanism is a necessity that we must always keep in mind when carrying out any process that involves our identity on the Internet.. Considering this, we must mention that, once installed, you must be aware of third-party access to your computer in order to prevent them from accessing your services, with your certificate. To do this, set a password to your Windows session and create a guest session, in case you need to lend your computer to someone else.
Likewise, take into account the certificate management and administration tool, which will allow you to maintain control of the ones you have installed, with the purpose of eliminating obsolete ones or adding new ones. Installing a Digital Certificate on your Windows computer is only a matter of a couple of minutes and will allow you to preserve the integrity and security of your personal data on the web.