2015-05779. Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Certificate Action Form

The Department of Commerce will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35).

Agency: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Commerce.

Title: Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Certificate Action Form.

OMB Control Number: 0651-0045.

Form Number(s):

• PTO-2042.

Type of Request: Regular.

Number of Respondents: 4,500.

Average Hours per Response: 0.5.

Burden Hours: 2,250.

Cost Burden: $11,025.

Needs and Uses:

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) uses Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) technology to support electronic commerce between the USPTO and its customers. PKI is a set of hardware, software, policies, and procedures that provide important security services for the electronic business activities of the USPTO, including protecting the confidentiality of unpublished patent applications in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 122 and 37 CFR 1.14, as well as protecting international patent applications in accordance with Article 30 of the Patent Cooperation Treaty.

In order to provide the necessary security for its electronic commerce systems, the USPTO uses PKI technology to protect the integrity and confidentiality of information submitted to the USPTO. PKI employs public and private encryption keys to authenticate the customer's identity and support secure electronic communication between the customer and the USPTO. Customers may submit a request to the USPTO for a digital certificate, which enables the customer to create the encryption keys necessary for electronic identity verification and secure transactions with the USPTO. This digital certificate is required in order to access any secure online systems USPTO provides; including the systems for electronic filing of patent applications and viewing confidential information about unpublished patent applications.

Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits; not-for-profit institutions.

Frequency: On occasion.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to Obtain or Retain Benefits.

This information collection request may be viewed at reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view Department of Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.

OMB Desk Officer: Nicholas A. Fraser, email: [e-mail].

Once submitted, the request will be publicly available in electronic format through reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view Department of Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.

Paper copies can be obtained by:

• Email: [e-mail]. Include “0651-0045 copy request” in the subject line of the message.
• Mail: Marcie Lovett, Records Management Division Director, Office of the Chief Information Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent on or before April 13, 2015 to Nicholas A. Fraser, OMB Desk Officer, via email to [e-mail], or by fax to 202-395-5167, marked to the attention of Nicholas A. Fraser.

Dated: March 9, 2015.

Marcie Lovett,

Records Management Division Director, USPTO, Office of the Chief Information Officer.