# External Certification Authority An External Certification Authority (ECA) program issues public-key certificates to eligible individuals or organizations outside the U.S. federal workforce so they can authenticate to participating protected systems. ## Notebook evidence PDF page 12 of [[Scanned_20260730-1845]] groups ECA with [[Common Access Card|CAC]] and [[Personal Identity Verification|PIV]]. The comparison moves from employee/contractor credentials toward external-party trust. ## Boundary The page records research and does not establish application, eligibility, issuance, possession, or access to any government system. ## Relationships [[Public-Key Infrastructure]] · [[Digital Identity]] · [[Common Access Card]] · [[Personal Identity Verification]] ## Source - [[Scanned_20260730-1845]], PDF page 12.