What is a primary benefit of using digital certificates?

The primary benefit of using digital certificates is the verification of identity. Digital certificates serve as a form of electronic identification, allowing users to establish trust in digital communications by confirming the identities of the parties involved. They are issued by Certificate Authorities (CAs) and typically contain a public key along with identifying information about the entity that holds the corresponding private key. This mechanism helps ensure that the public key actually belongs to the claimed owner, thereby enhancing security and preventing impersonation or man-in-the-middle attacks in communication. This verification process is crucial in various applications, such as secure web browsing (SSL/TLS), email encryption, and code signing, ensuring that users can trust that they are interacting with the legitimate source.