What is a key advantage of using online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) over traditional methods?

The key advantage of using the Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) is that it provides real-time certificate status. This means that when a system or application needs to verify whether a digital certificate is still valid or has been revoked, it can do so instantaneously through OCSP. This immediacy is crucial in dynamic environments where security needs to be maintained continuously.

Unlike traditional methods such as Certificate Revocation Lists (CRLs), which require clients to download a potentially large list of revoked certificates and check against that list, OCSP allows for quicker, more efficient checks by querying the state of a specific certificate from an OCSP responder. This capability significantly enhances the timely security validation processes, which is essential for protecting sensitive data and maintaining secure communications in real time.

The other options do not accurately represent the primary benefits of OCSP. For instance, while it can be more efficient than CRLs, it doesn't inherently require less computing power than all traditional methods. Additionally, security is improved with OCSP rather than decreased, and OCSP does indeed require infrastructure, such as OCSP responders and clients capable of making these requests.