Protected Distribution Protocol for Keying and Certificate Material

A computer system and a method for the protected distribution of certificate and keying material between a certification authority and at least one entity in the certification authority's domain, including the steps of sending keying material, including a password, generated by the Certifying Authority to the entity via a secure medium; generating and protecting, by the entity, a public and a private key pair using the keying material provided it by the certifying authority; generating, protecting and sending a request for a certificate to the certifying authority using the keying material provided it by the certifying authority; requesting, by the certifying authority, that the public key and address of the entity be sent to the certifying authority; protecting and sending the public key and address of the entity to the certifying authority using the keying material provided it by the certifying authority; assembling and issuing the certificate to the entity from the certifying authority and recording the public key of the entity at the certifying authority for public use within the domain of the certifying authority.