EPD Environmental Protection Interactive Centre

Digital Certificate and Authentication

Q1. What is a digital certificate?

A digital certificate is an electronic file issued and digitally signed by a certification authority that vouches for the identity of the certificate holder. It provides a means of authentication for conducting online transactions.

For more information about digital certificates and certification authorities, you may refer to the Hongkong Post website:

- Frequently asked questions about public key infrastructure
- Frequently asked questions on e-Cert

Q2. Which types of digital certificates do EPIC licensing online services support?

The following digital certificates are generally supported by EPIC licensing online services:

Personal Digital Certificates

Hongkong Post e-Cert (Personal) for Smart ID card
Hongkong Post e-Cert (Personal)
Hongkong Post e-Cert (Personal) with "Mutual Recognition" Status
Hongkong Post Bank-Cert (Personal)
Digi-Sign Personal ID-Cert Class 1

Organisational Digital Certificates

Hongkong Post e-Cert (Organisational)
Hongkong Post e-Cert (Organisational) with "Mutual Recognition" Status
Hongkong Post Bank-Cert (Corporate)
Digi-Sign Organisational ID-Cert Class 2
Digi-Sign Organisational ID-Cert Class 5

Q3. What is the Hongkong Post e-Cert (Personal) for the Smart ID Card? Where can I get more information about it?

The Hongkong Post e-Cert (Personal) for the Smart ID Card is a personal digital certificate issued by the Hongkong Post Certification Authority. This e-Cert is embedded in your Hong Kong Smart ID Card and contains the following information:

- your name as it appears on the Hong Kong Identity Card;
- your Hong Kong Identity Card number (in encrypted form);
- your email address (optional); and
- your unique Subscriber Reference Number (SRN) assigned by Hongkong Post.

This is the only digital certificate that can be loaded onto the Hong Kong Identity Card. More information, such as application details, renewal information, user guides and other technical specifications, is available on the Hongkong Post website:

- Information on e-Cert for Smart ID Card
- Frequently asked questions about e-Cert for Smart ID Card

Q4. I am using Windows Vista and Internet Explorer to access an online service that requires user authentication. During user authentication, the screen displays security warnings - "Windows needs your permission to continue" and "A website wants to open web content using this program on your computer". What should I do?

You have probably logged on Windows Vista with an administrator account. To enhance system security, Windows Vista imposes restrictions on the administrator account and may ask for permissions before certain actions are executed.

Security warning (1):

Security warning (2):

Please log on Windows Vista with a standard user account before using the online service. In addition, because of changes in the security features of Windows Vista, you must install Java 6 Update 10 (or later) if you need to use the e-Cert in your Smart ID card for authentication.

Q5. When I tried to use my Digi-Sign Personal ID-Cert to sign an EPIC Licencing e-Form, I got an error message saying that the certificate could not be found. What should I do?

The problem probably occurs after the password of the certificate has been changed. If you encounter this problem, please import the certificate into Internet Explorer or Firefox and export a backup copy. You should be able to use the backup copy to login to the online service. Please refer to the Subscriber Operation Manual in Digi-Sign website on how to import and export the ID-Cert.