Note: This text was extracted from an informal document (NOT an RFC, nor a formal communication made to the IETF, the IESG, nor the IETF Secretariat). The IESG/IETF take no position regarding the validity or accuracy of the statement below. Digital Signature Algorithm (DSA) The U.S. Government holds U.S. patent 5,231,668 on the Digital Signature Algorithm (DSA), which has been incorporated into Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 186. The patent was issued on July 27, 1993. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has a long tradition of supplying U.S. Government-developed techniques to committees and working groups for inclusion into standards on a royalty-free basis. NIST has made the DSA patent available royalty- free to users worldwide. NIST has provided the following statement with regard to this patent: Regarding patent infringement, FIPS 186 summarizes our position; the Department of Commerce is not aware of any patents that would be infringed by the DSA. Questions regarding this matter may be directed to the Deputy Chief Counsel for NIST.