Greetings, The TriLUG meeting is coming up in exactly 1 week and since this talk for this meeting is a bit different I just wanted to make sure everyone was prepared.
I will be giving the talk about CACert (http://www.cacert.org/). CACert, among other things, provides FREE SSL CERTIFICATES that you can use for web servers or mail servers or e-mail. Now, since security isn't any good if you just give cryptography certificates away to just anybody, how do they decide who gets one? The answer is very similar to a concept in GPG and it's called the Web Of Trust. CACert has a Web Of Trust where people's identities are checked by someone who's identity has been previously verified. Unlike the GPG web of trust where it's all or nothing, the CACert Web Of Trust lets you assign points to the trust rating. Accumulate 100 points and you can assure others and get FREE SSL CERTIFICATES. 100 point allows you to give someone else a maximum of 10 points and for each person you assure, you also get 2 points. Make it up to 150 points and you can give out 35 points which is normally the maximum you can give out. I say normally because, of course, there are always exceptions. The exception, in this case, is that every now and then, when they're trying to get a good Web Of Trust started in an area, it can be useful to let people give out a full 150 points right away. This is called "seeding" an area and it requires what's called a "Super Assurer". A "Super Assurer" has been granted 200 points and is allowed to give out up to 150 points right on the spot. For this meeting, we will have 3 Super Assurer's at the meeting: myself, Kevin Sonney and (hopefully) Brian McCollough. Super Assurer status is granted for a limited time, so that means that ONLY AT THIS MEETING can you get instantly assurred. If you wait until later, you'll need to find enough assurers to get up to 100 points and then assure 25 people yourself to get up to 150. So, don't wait! Now, and THIS IS IMPORTANT, what exactly do you have to do to be assured. There is a little bit of setup that you need to do beforehand. 1. Go to http://www.cacert.org/ and sign up for an account there. Make sure you use your FULL NAME exactly as it is on your passport or driver's license. 2. Once you have your account setup, log in and select the "CAcert Web of Trust" option on the ride side of the page. Under there, click the "US - WoT Form" link. This will give you a PDF of the Web Of Trust form filled out with all of your information. The actual link to the form is https://www.cacert.org/cap.php?format=letter but if you use that link, you'll also need to fill out your information. 3. Print out 3 (THREE) copies of this form. 4. Bring the forms and TWO FORMS OF GOVERNMENT ISSUED ID to the meeting At least one of the Ids must be a PICTURE ID. This is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. We will have extra forms at the meeting, but if you don't bring the ID you won't be able to be assured. So, that's it. Four easy steps. The most important one being BRING TWO FORMS OF GOVERNMENT ID (ONE OF WHICH MUST HAVE YOUR PICTURE ON IT). TriLUG, in the past, has had a good track record in the GPG web of trust. I'd love to see 25 to 50 people be assured in the CACert Web Of Trust. That would make us really stand out. So, remember to bring 2 forms of id next week and I'll see everyone there. Cheers, Tanner -- Tanner Lovelace clubjuggler at gmail dot com http://wtl.wayfarer.org/ (fieldless) In fess two roundels in pale, a billet fesswise and an increscent, all sable. -- TriLUG mailing list : http://www.trilug.org/mailman/listinfo/trilug TriLUG Organizational FAQ : http://trilug.org/faq/ TriLUG Member Services FAQ : http://members.trilug.org/services_faq/
