Red Hat Set To Unveil Certificate System

Red Hat plans to introduce its Red Hat Certificate System at LinuxWorld this week as part of a broader strategy to build out a robust security platform, sources close to the Raleigh, N.C.-based company said.

The server, based on assets that Red Hat acquired in September from America Online’s Netscape Security Solutions arm, will manage user identities and offer strong authentication, single sign-on and token management using X.509 certificates, LDAP and PKI security technologies, sources said.

A Red Hat spokeswoman confirmed that the company plans to launch a major security initiative at LinuxWorld, of which Red Hat Certificate System is one component. Red Hat recently scored a major win with the Department of Defense to implement its Certificate System on a “large scale,” she said.

When used with Red Hat’s LDAP-based Directory Server, also acquired from AOL and launched in June, customers can ensure the identity and authentication of users beyond the password level and impose better access control for corporate data, sources said.

The product stands to fill a big gap in Red Hat’s portfolio, making the Linux distributor more competitive with rivals like Novell and Microsoft, which already have directory and authentication products in place.

“With LDAP, the server lets you build a networked operating system, like Microsoft’s Active Directory and Windows security and Novell’s NDS, eDirectory and identity system,” said one source familiar with Red Hat’s plans.

Red Hat’s emerging security platform will make its Linux a fully secure, networked operating system on which customers can deploy any business application, partners say. “As the Linux OS becomes more of a mainstay than an option, companies like Red Hat and SUSE must up the ante when it comes to solutions,” said Frank Basanta, director of technology at Systems Solutions, New York. “Those who have been sitting on the fence with regard to using Linux within their current infrastructure now must take the leap.”