Digital certificates: how do they impact brand protection?

Digital certificates are fundamental to the protection of online brands, as they validate the authenticity of a site and protect communication with customers.

This layer of protection hinders fraud, scams, and the misuse of your name, elements that Branddi fights daily to guarantee the integrity of its brand in the digital environment.

Understanding how digital certificates strengthen your domain's security is the first step in shielding your brand against threats. And while the issuance of certificates is not our focus, our expertise in identifying and neutralizing brand abuse allows us to connect the dots between this technology and the effective defense of your business.

Read on to discover how digital certificates act on the front line of protecting your brand and how to identify if your online presence is properly secure!

What are digital certificates?

In essence, a digital certificate works like an electronic identity card for individuals, companies (brands), and even servers on the internet.

To this end, it uses advanced cryptography technology to ensure three fundamental pillars in online transactions and communications:

• Authenticity: prove that the site or person/company on the other side of the communication is who they really say they are. For your brand, this means that your customers can trust that they are interacting with your official site, and not with a fraudulent imitation;
• Integrity: guarantees that the information exchanged (such as form data or transaction details) was not changed or corrupted during transit between the user and your brand's server;
• Confidentiality (in some types of certificate): ensures that only the authorized sender and receiver have access to the content of the message, protecting sensitive data from interception.

The importance of this technology is undeniable and growing. Proof of this is that, according to recent data from National Digital Certification Association (ANCD), the Brazilian Public Key Infrastructure (ICP-Brazil) registered a record in 2024, with more than 10.6 million digital certificates issued.

Notably, more than 50% of active certificates belong to legal entities, which demonstrates the massive adherence of companies to this security layer to protect their operations and, by extension, their brands.

For Branddi, which ensures brand protection on all digital fronts, a valid digital certificate on a company's website is a clear sign of responsibility and a hindrance to phishing actions and creation of fake sites.

That's because it's one of the first barriers scammers encounter when trying to impersonate your brand to deceive consumers.

What is the digital certificate for?

In addition to being an electronic identity, the digital certificate has a range of practical applications that are vital for the secure operation and protection of your brand on a daily basis. After all, when your company uses a digital certificate, it is not only complying with requirements, but also strengthening its reputation and the trust of its customers.

See the main utilities and how they benefit your brand:

• Authenticate sites (HTTPS): enables the “security padlock” (HTTPS) on your brand's website, encrypting data, protecting sensitive information and signaling to visitors that the site is legitimate and secure, making it difficult for fraudsters to act;
• Digitally sign documents: grants legal validity to electronic documents, streamlining processes, reducing costs and ensuring the authenticity of your brand agreements;
• Issue Electronic Invoices (NF-e): guarantees the authorship and integrity of the NF-e, a requirement for most companies, keeping their brand in tax compliance;
• Perform secure banking transactions: adds an extra layer of security to your brand's online financial operations, and is required by many institutions for Legal Entities;
• Access government portals: protects and facilitates access to online services of public agencies (e-CAC, eSocial), ensuring that only authorized representatives act for your brand;
• Protect email communication: allows you to sign and encrypt emails, ensuring the authenticity of your brand communication and the confidentiality of information against interception and phishing.

In short, the digital certificate is a multifunctional tool that goes far beyond a simple bureaucratic requirement.

Each of these applications represents a strengthening point of brand protection, building a safer and more reliable digital environment for both the company and its customers.

What is the importance of digital certificates?

On a daily basis, as pointed out by industry experts, such as those from National Digital Certification Association (ANCD), more than 2 million digital signatures are made using ICP-Brazil certificates, a clear reflection of the trust and the indispensable nature of this technology.

This massive volume of use shows that certificates are not just a technical requirement, but a tool integrated into the daily lives of companies and citizens.

For brands, this importance directly translates into greater protection against fraud, strengthening reputation, and building a relationship of trust with their customers.

But how does this importance materialize in your brand's daily life? And how can the absence or misuse of digital certificates expose your business to risks?

Read on to understand in depth the impacts and benefits of this technology for the security and integrity of your online presence.

Authenticity guarantee

The main function of the digital certificate is to act as a seal of authenticity for your brand in the online environment. After all, it confirms that the site your customer interacts with actually belongs to your company, and not to a fraudster trying to impersonate you.

This validation is viewed through 'HTTPS' and the padlock icon in the browser, a universal sign of security.

For the protection of your brand, ensuring that authenticity is the first step in preventing fake sites from deceiving your consumers, diverting sales, or tarnishing your reputation, building an essential trust base.

Confidentiality

The confidentiality provided by digital certificates is essential to protect the sensitive information exchanged between your brand and your customers.

SSL/TLS encryption, enabled by certificates, encrypts this data, making it useless for interceptors and helping to prevent these devastating costs, which directly impact your brand's reputation and financial stability.

Data integrity

In addition to authenticity and confidentiality, digital certificates guarantee the integrity of your brand and customer data.

This means that the information sent and received - whether an order, a contact form, or transaction data - is not altered or corrupted during communication between the user and your company's server.

This guarantee is fundamental to the accuracy of online operations, ensuring that customers receive correct information and that transactions are processed as they should, strengthening the reliability and professional image of your brand in the digital environment.

Ease and agility in processes

Digital certificates bring remarkable ease and agility to various business processes, positively impacting the operation of your brand. This is because the ability to digitally sign documents, with legal validity, eliminates the need for printing, physical mailing, and notarization, optimizing time.

Likewise, the electronic issuance of invoices (NF-e) simplifies tax compliance. This modernization results in reduced costs and leaner processes.

Legal and regulatory compliance

Maintaining legal and regulatory compliance is a fundamental aspect for the sustainability of any brand, and digital certificates are key parts of this process.

For various obligations, such as the issuance of Electronic Invoices (NF-e), the delivery of information to eSocial, and access to government systems such as the Federal Revenue Service e-CAC, the use of a digital certificate is mandatory.

Being up to date with these requirements not only avoids fines and sanctions, but it also transmits an image of the seriousness and responsibility of your brand before the market, customers and supervisory bodies.

Reducing fraud and increasing trust

One of the most significant impacts of digital certificates is the reduction of fraud, which, consequently, increases trust in your brand. After all, by authenticating online identity and encrypting data, they make it difficult for scammers to take action.

The problem is serious: research by Adyen, released by CNN Brazil, revealed that 48% of digital companies in Brazil lose between R$ 3 million and R$ 5 million annually due to fraud.

The implementation and correct use of certificates are protective barriers, signaling to customers a more secure environment for transactions and interactions.

Increased brand credibility

The consistent use of digital certificates directly results in increasing the credibility of your brand.

By demonstrating a commitment to security, authenticity, and compliance, your company transmits professionalism and care for customer data and experience. In addition, this seal of trust, visible through HTTPS and perceived by the secure fluidity of the processes, differentiates your brand in the market.

Remember: customers tend to prefer and be more loyal to companies that invest in a secure digital environment, which reflects positively on the reputation and perceived value of your brand.

What do digital certificates actually protect brands from?

In the digital universe, where threats to brand reputation and security are constant and evolving rapidly, digital certificates emerge as a fundamental line of defense. That is, they are not just a technical requirement, but an active shield.

According to the “Global Threat Scenario” report from FortiGuard Labs, Fortinet's intelligence laboratory, Brazil faced 23 billion cyberattack attempts in the first half of 2023 alone, leading the ranking in Latin America.

This alarming scenario, where attacks are becoming increasingly targeted and sophisticated, highlights the need for robust layers of security.

For brands, digital certificates are key parts of this protection, mitigating risks ranging from the diversion of customers to irreparable financial and legal damages.

But in practice, how is this protection manifested? Faced with such an expressive volume of threats and the growing sophistication of intruders, what specific dangers can a well-implemented digital certificate rid your brand of?

We invite you to continue reading to discover the concrete ways in which this technology protects your online presence and guarantees the peace of mind of your businesses and customers.

Protection against identity spoofing

Online identity falsification occurs when scammers impersonate legitimate brands to trick customers. This hurts trust, diverts revenue, and damages brand reputation.

Digital certificates (SSL/TLS) combat this by validating the authenticity of your brand's site through HTTPS.

Thus, customers can confirm that they are on the official channel, hindering the success of fake pages and protecting the integrity of your brand in the digital environment.

Transaction security

Insecure online transactions expose customer data to interceptions, such as man-in-the-middle attacks. Thus, if financial information is stolen from your brand's website, the result is financial loss, reputational shock, and mistrust.

Digital certificates (SSL/TLS) are essential here, as they encrypt the data exchanged between the client and your brand's server.

This encryption protects information during transmission, ensuring safer transactions and strengthening your company's credibility.

Preventing phishing and online fraud

Phishing uses baits (emails, fake sites) to “fish” users, posing as trustworthy brands, causing financial losses and undermining trust in the imitated brand.

The predominance of this threat is clear: according to monitoring of Appgate, phishing accounted for 61% of the fraudulent activities neutralized in the first six months of 2024.

In these cases, digital certificates aid prevention by allowing users to verify the authenticity of websites via HTTPS, being an essential barrier, especially when clients are directed to seek this validation.

Are digital certificates alone enough?

As we have seen, although digital certificates are essential to establish the authenticity of a website (via HTTPS) and protect data in transit, it is a misconception that they, by themselves, guarantee complete protection against phishing and other digital threats.

Phishing attacks, for example, often exploit social engineering, tricking users into clicking on malicious links in emails or messages that can even redirect traffic to fraudulent sites that also have certificates (obtained illegitimately or by less strict entities).

That is, to be effective, brand protection requires a multilayered approach that combines technology, constant user education, and proactive threat monitoring on various platforms, going beyond simple domain validation.

Learn more about how we do this here at Branddi!

Count on Branddi to protect your brand in the digital universe!

While digital certificates are important components of your site's security, fully protecting your brand in the digital environment requires more.

Branddi is the missing piece, offering comprehensive shielding against online abuse on all platforms.

Our solution goes beyond your domain, actively combating:

• Unfair competition: we counteract the misuse of your keywords in advertisements and other practices that harm your ROI;
• Online scams and fraud: we remove fake sites, ads, and profiles that impersonate your brand to deceive your customers;
• Piracy and counterfeit products: we identify and remove illegal offers on marketplaces and e-commerce, protecting your revenue and intellectual property.

matching artificial intelligence and dedicated specialists, we monitor and act 24/7, from start to takedown, ensuring more security for your business's digital experience.

Are you ready for truly complete brand protection? Visit the Branddi website and learn more about our Shielding marketing!