When you mention SSL, the first protocol that comes to people's mind is OpenVPN. Which is rather funny, considering the fact that OpenVPN is no SSL VPN protocol. SSL VPN protocols are protocols like SSTP, SonicWALL SSL or Cisco AnyConnect. A SSL VPN protocol is a protocol that uses TLS…

Previous posts in this series Understanding Cryptographic Terms - Cryptography 101 All About Certificates - The Anatomy of a Certificate Which Types of Certificates Exist and How are They Created? What is the Subject Alternative Name and Why is it Important for VPN? Why Are Certificates Used for VPN? Best…

When creating an email or server certificate, there is one important final step: The Subject Alternative Name (SAN). This is the attribute that people most often ignore, that is commonly missing completely in certificates or used incorrectly which causes all kind of undesired behaviour – putting the security of servers…

Before we can delve into the wonderful world of certificates, we first need to understand some basic cryptographic terms and operations, but don't worry, it will be far less technical than you might fear and there will be barely any math involved. Let's get started!