A digital ID enables you to send digitally signed messages using Microsoft Outlook. A digital ID—also known as a digital certificate—helps prove your identity and helps prevent message tampering to protect the authenticity of an email message. You also can encrypt messages for greater privacy.


NOTE: A digital signature isn’t the same as a message signature, which is a customizable salutation. A digital signature adds unique code to a message that only comes from the digital ID held by the true sender.


What would you like to do?


Get a digital ID from a certifying authority 



  1. On the Tools menu, click Trust Center, and then click E-mail Security.

  2. Under Digital IDs (Certificates), click Get a Digital ID.

  3. Click Get an S/MIME certificate from an external Certification Authority, and then click OK.

    Outlook starts your web browser and opens a webpage on the Microsoft Office Online website that lists several certification authorities. Click the one that you want to use and follow the instructions on the webpage to register for a digital ID. The certification authority will then send you a digital ID and instructions via e-mail.



Specify the digitalID to use 

 Add a recipient's certificate to your Contacts

  1. Open a message that has been digitally signed.

  2. Right-click the name in the From box, and then click Add to Outlook Contacts on the shortcut menu.

  3. If you already have an entry for this person, in the Duplicate Contact Detected dialog box, select Update information of selected Contact. A backup copy will be saved in Deleted Items Folder.

    The certificate is now stored with your contact entry for this recipient. You can now send encrypted e-mail messages to this person.

    To view the certificate for a contact, double-click the person's name, and then click the Certificates tab.


Add a recipient's certificate to your Contacts 



  1. Open a message that has been digitally signed.

  2. Right-click the name in the From box, and then click Add to Outlook Contacts on the shortcut menu.

  3. If you already have an entry for this person, in the Duplicate Contact Detected dialog box, select Update information of selected Contact. A backup copy will be saved in Deleted Items Folder.


    The certificate is now stored with your contact entry for this recipient. You can now send encrypted e-mail messages to this person.


    To view the certificate for a contact, double-click the person's name, and then click the Certificates tab.



Get a digital ID for sending messages by using Microsoft Exchange


  1. This feature requires you to use a Microsoft Exchange Server 2000, Exchange Server 2003, or Exchange Server 2007 account. Most home and personal accounts don't use Microsoft Exchange.

    To get an Exchange digital ID—for example, through Key Management Service—your Exchange administrator must have security running on the server and must give you a special password, called a token. Your Exchange will then send you a message verifying your token. For more information, see your Exchange administrator.

    1. On the Tools menu, click Trust Center, and then click E-mail Security.

    2. Under Digital IDs (Certificates), click Get a Digital ID.

    3. Click Set up Security for me on the Exchange.

    4. Click OK.

    5. In the Digital ID Name box, type your name.

    6. In the Token box, type the special password that your Exchange administrator assigned to you.

    7. In the Microsoft Office Outlook Security Password dialog box, type a different password for the digital ID, and then type the password again in the Confirm box.

      You will receive a message in your Inbox from your Exchange administrator that will require you to enter the password you created in this step.

    8. In the dialog box that appears, enter your password, click the Remember password for check box, and then enter the number of minutes for which you want Outlook to remember your password.

    9. In the Root Certificate Store message that appears, click Yes.


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