Subject: Questions Regarding Signing Certificates for MDM Configuration Profiles
Dear all,
I hope this message finds you well. I have some questions regarding the signing certificates used for MDM configuration profiles.
Currently, our company uses an SSL certificate to sign MDM configuration profiles. However, with the announcement that the validity period of SSL certificates will gradually be shortened starting in 2026, we are considering alternative options for signing certificates.
Through our internal testing and investigation, we have found examples of the following certificate chains being used:
・Developer ID - G1 (Expiring 02/01/2027 22:12:15 UTC) + Developer ID Application certificate chain
・Apple Root CA + Apple Worldwide Developer Relations Intermediate Certificate + MDM CSR certificate chain
We would appreciate any insights or experiences you can share regarding the following points:
Apple Support previously advised that "certificates issued by public certificate authorities (CAs) trusted by Apple" are recommended. The certificates listed at https://www.apple.com/certificateauthority/ are typically preinstalled on Apple devices. Are these considered "trusted public CAs" by Apple in this context?
Is it acceptable in practice to use a certificate obtained from the “Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles” section on developer.apple.com for signing MDM configuration profiles? We would be grateful to hear about any real-world experiences.
If the answer to question 2 is yes, which certificate type within “Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles” would be most appropriate for signing configuration profiles?
If using certificates from question 2 is not suitable, are there alternative certificate types (other than SSL) that are valid for longer periods (e.g., more than one year) and appropriate for signing MDM configuration profiles?
Apple's official documents do not seem to clearly specify what type of certificate should be used to sign MDM configuration profiles. If you know of any helpful documents or resources related to this topic, we would greatly appreciate it if you could share them.
Thank you very much for your time and support. We would truly appreciate any advice or guidance you can provide.