CISO Tribune

Vendor comparison · 2 companies

DigiCert vs PQShield

DigiCert ONE is a platform that includes Trust Lifecycle Manager for organizations that require CA-agnostic certificate lifecycle management. PQShield is a cybersecurity company specialising in post-quantum cryptography. CISO Tribune files both under Post-quantum cryptography. This page sets the two records side by side: what each sells, where it is based, who owns and funds it, the customers it names and its recent news, each fact numbered to its source.

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  • DigiCert
  • PQShield
DigiCert vs PQShield: Products, Customers and Funding Compared
DigiCertDigiCert ONE is a platform that includes Trust Lifecycle Manager for organizations that require CA-agnostic certificate lifecycle management.digicert.comPQShieldPQShield is a cybersecurity company specialising in post-quantum cryptography.pqshield.com
What it sells
  • AI Trust Manager[1][8]Helps organizations discover, secure, and govern AI agents, AI models, and MCP servers.
  • CertCentral[1][3]Used to order and administer DigiCert certificates.
  • Private CA[1][7]DigiCert's Private CA solutions are pointed to strictly internal use cases.
  • DigiCert X9 PKI[7]A dedicated public key infrastructure for interoperability and flexibility for non-web browsers.
  • PQMicroLib-Core[1][10]A library designed with flexibility and configurability in mind.
  • PQCryptoLib-Core[1][10]A general-purpose cryptographic library for a wide variety of applications.
  • PQCryptoLib-SDK[1][10]A plug-and-play tool for moving OpenSSL-based applications to quantum resilience.
  • PQPlatform-CoPro[1][10]A cryptographic coprocessor that adds post-quantum capabilities to an existing security subsystem.
  • PQPlatform-TrustSys[1][5][10]A PQC-focused Root-of-Trust security solution.
  • PQPerform-Flare[10]A hardware-based PQC product designed for high throughput and low latency.
  • PQPerform-Inferno[1][10]A scalable hardware solution built on the PQPerform-Flare architecture.
  • PQPerform-Flex[10]PQPerform-Inferno combined with a RISC-V processor as a complete subsystem.
Categories
Headquarters
Not stated on its pagesUnited Kingdom[2][3]
Founded
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Ownership and funding
Not stated on its pagesPrivately held[9]
Named customers
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Recent news
  • September 24, 2026DigiCert announced general availability of Quantum Central, a DigiCert ONE platform offering that helps organizations manage progress toward post-quantum cryptography readiness.[12]
Not stated on its pages
G2 and Gartner Peer Insights
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
Who it fits
X9 PKI is aimed at host-to-host communications (mTLS) involving multiple organizations. DigiCert issues ZertES certificates for organizations and individuals that require legally recognized digital trust under Swiss law. Trust Lifecycle Manager is described for organizations that require CA-agnostic certificate lifecycle management. DigiCert AI Trust Manager is described for organizations that need to discover, secure, and govern AI agents, AI models, and MCP servers. CertCentral Europe is hosted in European data centers for customers with data residency and sovereignty requirements.Not written yet
Last verified
November 5, 2026November 2, 2026

Where they overlap

  • DigiCert and PQShield are both filed under Post-quantum cryptography.

Where they differ, field by field

  • DigiCert's primary category is Machine identity and PKI; PQShield's is Post-quantum cryptography.
  • DigiCert is also filed under DNS security and Email authentication and DMARC. PQShield is also filed under Encryption, tokenization and key management.
  • DigiCert lists AI Trust Manager, CertCentral, Private CA and DigiCert X9 PKI. PQShield lists PQMicroLib-Core, PQCryptoLib-Core, PQCryptoLib-SDK, PQPlatform-CoPro, PQPlatform-TrustSys and 3 more.
  • PQShield is headquartered in United Kingdom.
  • PQShield is privately held.

What it sells: DigiCert

What AI Trust Manager does[1][8]
DigiCert AI Trust Manager assigns each AI agent a cryptographically verifiable AI Agent Passport linked to its organizational and human ownership. DigiCert AI Trust Manager verifies AI model integrity from development through deployment and runtime. DigiCert AI Trust Manager protects AI agents, AI models, and MCP servers, as well as the systems, tools, and data they access.
What CertCentral does[1][3]
DigiCert certificates can be ordered and administered through CertCentral Europe. CertCentral Europe is hosted in European data centers to address data residency and sovereignty requirements. CertCentral Europe is part of the DigiCert ONE platform.
What DigiCert X9 PKI does[7]
DigiCert X9 PKI is a dedicated public key infrastructure designed to provide interoperability and flexibility for non-web browsers. DigiCert X9 PKI operations are governed by an ASC X9 Policy Committee and undergo an annual independent WebTrust audit. Organizations with existing PKI systems can cross-certify with the X9 PKI root. The X9 PKI is intended for non-browser TLS authentication scenarios.

What it sells: PQShield

What PQMicroLib-Core does[1][10]
PQMicroLib-Core is a library designed with flexibility and configurability in mind. A CAVP-Ready version of PQCryptoLib-Core is tailored for embedded systems, small footprint solutions and memory constrained devices.
What PQCryptoLib-Core does[1][10]
PQCryptoLib-Core is a FIPS 140-3 CMVP Certified / CAVP Compliant general-purpose cryptographic library designed for a wide variety of applications. PQCryptoLib-Core is configurable by a secure API.
What PQCryptoLib-SDK does[1][10]
PQCryptoLib-SDK is a plug-and-play tool that helps to transition OpenSSL-based applications to quantum resilience. Software implementations of PQC algorithms are supplied via an OpenSSL provider, including ML-DSA, Falcon, ML-KEM and hybrid PQ/T schemes for TLS.
What PQPerform-Flare does[10]
PQPerform-Flare is a hardware-based FIPS 140-3 CAVP-certified product designed for high throughput and low latency PQC. PQPerform-Flare supports ML-DSA (FIPS 204) and ML-KEM (FIPS 203) and is optimized for TLS.
What PQPerform-Inferno does[1][10]
PQPerform-Inferno is a scalable hardware solution. Building on the architecture of PQPerform-Flare, Inferno integrates multiple instances with load balancing, and can deliver over 1 million key encapsulations per second.

Questions about DigiCert and PQShield

What do DigiCert and PQShield sell?
DigiCert sells AI Trust Manager, CertCentral, Private CA and DigiCert X9 PKI. PQShield sells PQMicroLib-Core, PQCryptoLib-Core, PQCryptoLib-SDK, PQPlatform-CoPro, PQPlatform-TrustSys and 3 more.
Are DigiCert and PQShield in the same category?
They share Post-quantum cryptography. DigiCert's primary category is Machine identity and PKI and PQShield's is Post-quantum cryptography.
Where are DigiCert and PQShield headquartered?
PQShield is headquartered in United Kingdom.
Who owns DigiCert and PQShield?
PQShield is privately held.
Who are DigiCert and PQShield sold to?
X9 PKI is aimed at host-to-host communications (mTLS) involving multiple organizations.
What have DigiCert and PQShield announced recently?
September 24, 2026: DigiCert announced general availability of Quantum Central, a DigiCert ONE platform offering that helps organizations manage progress toward post-quantum cryptography readiness.

About DigiCert

DigiCert ONE is a platform that includes Trust Lifecycle Manager for organizations that require CA-agnostic certificate lifecycle management. CertCentral Europe is part of the DigiCert ONE platform. DigiCert ONE is available to customers from global regions including European, Australia, India, Japan, and the United States.[3]

DigiCert certificates can be ordered and administered through CertCentral Europe, which is hosted in European data centers to address data residency and sovereignty requirements. DigiCert signs all SSL certificates using the SHA-256 Algorithm. DigiCert assigns an alphanumeric serial number to each SSL certificate it issues. DigiCert offers identity-validated S/MIME for encryption, signing, and phishing protection. DigiCert describes protecting code signing for software releases.[2][3][4]

Verified Mark Certificates (VMCs) from DigiCert enable organizations to display their registered trademark logo in supported email clients. The BIMI standard requires organizations to have a logo that is a registered trademark so that they can be issued a VMC. DigiCert validates an organization's legal existence and confirms its control over the domain associated with the VMC request using Extended Validation (EV) standards. For a VMC, DigiCert performs additional validation beyond the standard Extended Validation (EV) certificate process. DigiCert validates that the SVG logo complies with BIMI requirements and exactly matches the registered trademark. The individual requesting a VMC must be verified as an authorized representative of the organization. Once approved, DigiCert issues the Verified Mark Certificate.[5][6]

DigiCert X9 PKI is a dedicated public key infrastructure designed to provide interoperability and flexibility for non-web browsers. DigiCert X9 PKI operations are governed by an ASC X9 Policy Committee and undergo an annual independent WebTrust audit. X9 PKI was born from the financial services industry’s need for a dedicated, interoperable trust framework. The X9 PKI is intended for non-browser TLS authentication scenarios. Its main use case at the outset is mutual TLS (mTLS) among financial institutions and between them and their partners and customers. Organizations with existing PKI systems can cross-certify with the X9 PKI root. DTCC will require X9 PKI certificates for securing connections to IBM MQ, Connect:Direct, and FTPS.

DigiCert is a Qualified Trust Service Provider issuing digital certificates under EU and national trust frameworks, including eIDAS, PKIoverheid (Netherlands), and ZertES (Switzerland). DigiCert issues eIDAS qualified certificates, and the available certificate types include QWACs for PSD2, as well as qualified electronic signatures, seals, and timestamps. DigiCert issues PKIoverheid qualified certificates for personal organizations, professionals, and citizens. DigiCert issues ZertES certificates for organizations and individuals that require legally recognized digital trust under Swiss law. ZertES certificates support qualified and regulated electronic signatures, electronic seals, and qualified timestamps.[3]

DigiCert AI Trust Manager helps organizations discover, secure, and govern AI agents, AI models, and MCP servers. DigiCert AI Trust Manager assigns each AI agent a cryptographically verifiable AI Agent Passport linked to its organizational and human ownership. DigiCert AI Trust Manager verifies AI model integrity from development through deployment and runtime. DigiCert AI Trust Manager protects AI agents, AI models, and MCP servers, as well as the systems, tools, and data they access. DigiCert describes automating passport revocation to enable a real-time kill switch for agentic sessions.[8]

DigiCert says replacing cryptography across systems, software, and devices is a multi-year effort that requires planning, testing, and coordination. DigiCert describes inventorying certificates, keys, endpoints, and libraries across PKI and beyond. DigiCert describes standardizing certificate issuance across disparate certificate authorities. DigiCert offers PQC-ready solutions for digital signatures, PKI, and certificate lifecycle management. DigiCert is active in CA/B Forum, IETF, ETSI, and C2PA. For connected devices, DigiCert describes giving every device a verifiable identity from deployment to retirement. For workloads, DigiCert describes making each workload, API, and container prove its identity. For digital content, DigiCert describes verifying that all digital content is authentic and unaltered.[2][8][9][10][11]

DigiCert on the record

Sources

DigiCert full record

  1. [1]digicert.comDigiCert · digicert.com · undated page, accessed November 5, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]TLS/SSL Certificate Authority | Leader in Digital Trust | DigiCertDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]Solutions for the European UnionDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]What extensions and details are included in a SSL certificate?DigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]VMC | New validation stepsDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]How to trademark your logo for VMCDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]DigiCert X9 PKI | DigiCertDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]AI Trust Manager | Cryptographic trust for AI | DigiCertDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Post-Quantum Cryptography Solutions & PQC Readiness | DigiCertDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Why DigiCert | Unified Digital Trust Leader | DigiCertDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Trust Calendar: Public Trust & Compliance Changes | DigiCertDigiCert · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  12. [12]DigiCert Quantum Central Now Available to Help Organizations Turn PQC Plans into ActionDigiCert · published September 24, 2026 · Tier A

PQShield full record

  1. [1]pqshield.comPQShield · pqshield.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Pqshield raises 37m in series b funding to deliver the widespread commercial adoption of quantum resistant cryptography 302175607PQShield via PR Newswire · prnewswire.com · published June 20, 2024 · Tier A
  3. [3]PQShield and Kudelski Security Partner to Address Quantum Threat | PQShieldPQShield · published September 29, 2021 · Tier A
  4. [4]Post-quantum Cryptography Experts | Quantum-safe & Quantum-resistant SolutionsPQShield · undated page, accessed October 27, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Post-Quantum Cryptography Solutions | PQShieldPQShield · published April 24, 2025 · Tier A
  6. [6]We are attending, WEF - Annual Meetings of the Global Future Councils and Cybersecurity, 14 Oct | PQShieldPQShield · published October 14, 2025 · Tier A
  7. [7]We are speaking: Security Privacy Identity & Trust (SPIT) SIG event, Cambridge, 28 January 2025 | PQShieldPQShield · published January 28, 2025 · Tier A
  8. [8]We are judging at - Cyber Security Awareness Week Europe, 7-8 November 2024 | PQShieldPQShield · published November 7, 2024 · Tier A
  9. [9]Quantum Security Company: What to Look For | PQShieldPQShield · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Quantum-safe & Quantum-resistant Software, Hardware & UpgradesPQShield · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]PQShield partners with Tata Consultancy Services and eShard to meet commercial demand for protecting organisations against quantum the threat | PQShieldPQShield · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A

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