Obtaining a verified mark certificate (VMC) is easier than ever
Jan 9, 2023 | Jindřich Zechmeister
After a year of issuing VMCs, obtaining them has been significantly simplified, which is good news for all interested parties. It is no longer necessary for notarization, which was annoying and lengthy. Learn more about how to easily get a VMC in the article.
What is a VMC?
For those unfamiliar with the abbreviation VMC, here is what it stands for. It is a special type of certificate allowing the email sender’s logo to be displayed in the recipient's email agents if they support VMC. The sender's logo will be displayed, which is protected by a trademark and whose owner has been verified. This contributes not only to a greater degree of trust in such messages and to their readership, but also to a better security for message recipients.
You can read more about VMC on the product page.
Notarizing the applicant is no longer necessary
Part of the initial verification proposal for VMC and pilot operation was notarizing the applicant for this type of certificate. Since notarization proved to be extremely laborious and annoying for customers, it was abandoned.
Now you don't have to go anywhere and you can get the certificate from your office. It is sufficient if the applicant's company is registered in the commercial register and is functioning properly. The rest will be verified by DigiCert itself and the applicant will be verified in the same way as if they were applying for an EV certificate (verification will be valid for the same 13 months as for EV). At the end of the verification process, there will be a two-minute Skype call with a DigiCert employee, which precedes the certificate’s issuance. It will then be sent to the applicant by email and can be used.
A trademark for your logo is necessary to obtain a VMC
A registered trademark for the logo you want to display in emails is still a prerequisite for obtaining a VMC. This logo must be registered with a European authority.
Complete information on the requirements for obtaining a VMC can be found in the article What do I have to do to obtain a VMC?
Your IT department will take care of the rest
Issuing a VMC certificate alone does not guarantee that recipients will see your logo in emails. It is necessary to have a properly set DMARC and correctly published DNS records. These are concerns that you can leave up to your IT department or mail administrator. It will certainly not be a problem for them to prepare everything necessary to deploy the VMC certificate. Of course, they can contact our support if necessary.
