✍🏻 12th Grade Other: Certificate Transparency Logs

Certificate Transparency (CT) is an open framework that helps ensure the integrity of SSL/TLS certificates issued by Certificate Authorities (CAs). In essence, CT creates a publicly auditable log of all issued certificates. When a CA issues a certificate, it must submit it to one or more CT logs. These logs are append-only, meaning once a certificate is added, it cannot be removed or altered. This transparency allows domain owners, researchers, and the public to monitor for misissued or fraudulent certificates. Browsers and other systems can then query these logs to verify the legitimacy of a website's certificate, enhancing overall internet security and trust. The system relies on multiple independent logs operated by different entities to prevent single points of failure or manipulation.