For security reasons, your Digital Certificate should be stored on a hardware device, such as a Cryptographic USB Token. These tokens store your Digital Certificate securely and ensures that nobody else has access to your private key except you.

One of the most important properties of the cryptographic USB token is that your Private Key stored on the token, can never be copied out of the token. As a result, during a digital signing operation, the Digital Signature is created directly on the token. Security for your Private Key is further enhanced through the mandatory use of a password to access the contents of the cryptographic USB token.

All said and done, the cryptographic USB Token is very simple to use. You simply need to plug the token into the USB port of your computer, provide the password to the token, and perform your signing operations.

As a practise, please ensure that when you have completed your signing activities, unplug the USB token from your computer and store it in a safe place. Please remember that if you lose your USB token or forget the password to the USB token, there is no way to retrieve your Private Key. You will have to purchase a replacement token and a replacement Digital Certificate, as the case may be.