Comodo CA Rebrands as Sectigo

On November 1st 2018, Comodo – the global SSL certificate authority rebranded itself as Sectigo. With the rebranding Comodo aims to weed out the confusion in brand recognition that exists in the market. Allied objectives of the rebranding exercise include venturing into related sectors of cyber security like web security, digital transformation and services.

“…By rebranding as Sectigo, we are emphasizing our expansion beyond SSL to IoT and web security and announcing our commitment to making the internet more secure, as well as safe – for businesses and consumers alike…” said, Bill Holtz, CEO, Sectigo in the official press release.

The journey so far

Comodo CA was acquired by Francisco Partners in October 2017. At the time of acquisition, Comodo is reported claims to have sold an estimated 100 million certificates that are used by 700,000 businesses on a global scale.

What led to the rebranding?

There is still a part of Comodo that Francisco Partners did not acquire. The rebranding is an exercise to avoid the conflict of brand names. Also, Sectigo would stand for a comprehensive security brand that goes “beyond SSL to IoT and web security” as quoted by Bill Holtz.

Sectigo (previously Comodo) has several futuristic security products under its belt, like IoT Manager, CodeGuard,Inc, and Certificate Manager 6.0. The brand also has global industry memberships that helps it maintain a position of ‘Standards Leadership’ with global forums like WiMAX Forum, GSMA, Zigbee, OCF, and Joint Venture – Silicon Valley.

With the expansion, Sectigo will move into a new headquarters at Roseland, NJ. the security brand will also have a new development center working out of Ottawa, Canada. The new development center is expected to bring additional QA capabilities as well as multi-lingual support for Sectigo’s products. As part of the rebranding process, Sectigo also expanded its global headcount by 17%.

So, what changes for existing customers?

Nothing. The rebranding exercise is not going to affect the already issued SSL certificates. The certificates will continue to function as they used to in the past. There is no need for repurchasing or reinstalling of certificates. All the web browsers would continue to show Comodo as the Certificate Authority.

The only change, minor one though, would be the old sites being phased out of use. They will be replaced by the new Sectigo website in a timely manner. The new website promises a user-centric experience that intuitive navigation, easier product finding, and so on. Sectigo has also rolled out an exclusive YouTube channel where it broadcasts product and informational videos.

Changes for new customers

With the rebranding, new customers would now be presented with the new product portfolio that will carry the Sectigo brand names.

Also, the trust seal that Comodo used to issue for its SSL certificates will also change with the rebranding.

About Sectigo

Sectigo is a Certificate Authority which was previously Comodo CA. Sectigo provides cyber security products like SSL certificates and services for websites and connected devices. The company is headquartered in Roseland, NJ and sells its products to the world at large.