In recent years, the use of digital certificates has become widespread, especially when it comes to carrying out procedures with the public Administration. For greater convenience, many users have them installed on their own phones, but sometimes it is necessary to have them on the PC. How to export the digital certificate from your mobile phone to a Windows computer?
We talk about that in this post, explaining what it is. the correct way to do it on both iOS and Android. This way we can easily access our certificates from any of the devices we normally use.
The truth is that it is very convenient to carry digital certificates on your mobile phone, always at hand. However, when we need to perform certain procedures, such as processing the Income Tax return, It is more appropriate to do it from a computer keyboard. Hence the convenience of knowing how to export the digital certificate from your mobile phone to your computer.
What is a digital certificate?
It is possible that in the not too distant future the development of technology will provide us with new and amazing systems through which we can certify the real identity of a person on the Internet. However, today the most reliable method is the digital certificate.
The digital certificate is a document that contains a series of identifying data referring to a specific person or entity. These data have previously been authenticated by an official body. Currently, this is the safest and most reliable method when interacting with public administrations.
Export a digital certificate to a PC
The method of exporting a digital certificate from a smartphone to a computer It depends on what operating system the mobile works with. That is, there is a specific one for Android and a different one for iOS. We explain both below:
From Android
To export a digital certificate to a PC from an Android device (phone or tablet), these are the steps we must follow:
- First of all, we have to locate the backup copy of the certificate on our mobile device. For this we can use the application "File manager" o "My files" (the name varies depending on the manufacturer).
- Within this application, we look for the folder Downloads, which is where the copy of the certificate is hosted.*
- From this file it is possible to create a Backup that we can install on a PC or other device. We can even send it to our own email to have it available in case of an incident with the phone. Important: to access this copy it is necessary to enter the password that we assigned when creating the certificate.
- Finally, when the certificate is already on the PC, you must follow the import instructions of the administration that issued the certificate. For example, in the case of certificates issued by the FNMT, the instructions are detailed in this link.
(*) Another option is to connect the mobile phone to the PC using a USB cable and thus directly access the indicated folder.
From iOS
In the case of wanting to export a digital certificate hosted on an iPhone or iPad to a computer, the steps to follow differ slightly from those of the method explained above. They are the following:
- First, in order to get the backup, we can go to «See requested certificates» and start the download process.
- Before starting this process, iOS will ask us if we want to share it. We have to answer affirmatively and send it to our own email through the Mail application.
- Finally, we just have to go to the computer, access the email and descargar el file. As in the case of Android, for finish import You must follow the import instructions of the administration that issued the certificate.
The easiest thing: use the FNMT app
If these are digital certificates issued by the FNMT (Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre), the whole process becomes much simpler. The ideal is that we have installed the official FNMT app on our mobile. These are the download links:
With this application installed on your mobile, the export process is much faster and easier through these steps:
- First We open the FNMT Digital Certificate application.
- Then we will «My Installed certificates».
- Next we click on the digital certificate that we want to export. There we go to the option «Share backup». We will need to enter the password twice to continue.
- Finally, a screen appears with the different sharing options: Google Drive, email, WhatsApp, Telegram, etc. and then download the certificate to your computer.
As you can see, this is the most direct way to export a digital certificate from a mobile phone to the computer. The only thing we always have to keep in mind is that the password will be essential to complete the process. So it is better to remember it or have it written down in a safe place.