What does Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) enable organizations to create?

Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is a framework that enables organizations to create and manage digital certificates and public-private key pairs, essential for establishing secure communication and verifying identities in digital transactions. By using PKI, organizations can implement digital signatures, which are cryptographic methods that ensure the authenticity and integrity of a message or document, and encryption, which protects data confidentiality during transmission and storage.

The digital signatures created with PKI allow the sender to prove ownership of the data and ensure that it has not been altered. Additionally, the use of encryption ensures that even if data is intercepted during communication, it cannot be read without the appropriate decryption key. This twofold capability of providing identity verification and enabling secure data transmission makes PKI a foundational component of modern cybersecurity practices.

The other options do not directly relate to the primary functionalities provided by PKI. While VPNs enhance secure remote access, they rely on different technologies. Firewalls protect networks from unauthorized access but do not pertain specifically to PKI. Finally, cloud storage solutions involve data storage management and access but also do not inherently rely on PKI for their operation. Thus, the emphasis on digital signatures and encryption aligns directly with the capabilities that PKI enables for organizations.