# Verify certificate of authenticity for a Mark

[Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/mark-certificate-verify)

Every claimed Mark carries a numbered certificate in its holder's name. Anyone can check one in seconds, without an account, and read exactly who holds the Mark and how it got there.

## The short version

- Anyone can verify a Gradiently certificate at gradiently.design/verify by entering its number, such as GRC-7K2M-9QXA-4TPW, or the Mark's code.
- Checking a certificate needs no account and no sign-in.
- The result says whether the certificate is current, replaced by a newer one, no longer current, or revoked, then shows the holder and the Mark's full history.
- Each change of owner issues a new certificate and replaces the old one, so an older certificate stays genuine as a record but no longer proves who holds the Mark today.
- A certificate is a Gradiently registry record: it is not an NFT, uses no blockchain and is not a registered trademark.

To **verify certificate** of authenticity for a Gradiently Mark, go to `gradiently.design/verify`, type the certificate number from the top of the certificate (it reads like `GRC-7K2M-9QXA-4TPW`) or the Mark's code, and choose **Check**. You need no account. The answer comes straight from the Gradiently registry, the only place certificates are issued: whether the certificate is genuine and current, who holds the Mark today and since when, and every change of hands since it was made.

This page is a practical walkthrough of that check and how to read the result. For what codes and certificates are in the first place, see [Mark codes and certificates](https://gradiently.design/guide/mark-codes-and-certificates).

## When you would verify a certificate

- **A client taking over from an agency** wants proof the Mark their brand runs on is now in their name, not the agency's.
- **Someone about to claim a Mark listed on the Market** wants to see its history before relying on it.
- **A business recording its brand assets** keeps the certificate number in its style guide and checks it each year.
- **Anyone shown a design** who wants to know whether its look genuinely belongs to the brand using it.

## How to verify a certificate, step by step

1. **Find the number** It sits at the top of the certificate. If you only have the Mark's code, such as `GR·K7Q2·MX`, that works too.
2. **Open the verify page** Go to `gradiently.design/verify`. You can also reach a Mark's certificate from **Certificate of authenticity** in its Details.
3. **Type it and choose Check** Certificate numbers start with GRC and have three groups of four characters. If the format is wrong, the page tells you before it searches.
4. **Read the verdict first** The sentence at the top says whether this certificate is current. Everything below it is evidence for that sentence.
5. **Then read the history** Every event, with dates, from the Mark's creation to its current holder.

```text
Certificate number   GRC-7K2M-9QXA-4TPW   one owner's time with one Mark
Mark code            GR·K7Q2·MX           the Mark itself, never changes
Code, typed loosely  grk7q2mx             also accepted: no dots, any case
```

Two things you can type into the verify page. The certificate number identifies one holding; the code identifies the Mark.

If nothing matches, the page says no certificate has that number. Check each character against the original: a mistyped group is the usual cause. If you entered a Mark's code and nobody has claimed it yet, the page says the Mark has no certificate yet, because the first person to claim it receives the first one.

## What the four verdicts mean

| Verdict | What it tells you | What to do |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Authentic and current** | An original Gradiently Mark, held by the named person since the date shown. This is its live certificate. | Nothing. This is the proof you were looking for. |
| **Authentic, but replaced** | The certificate was genuine when issued, but the Mark has a new owner, named on the page. | Follow the link to the current certificate. |
| **Authentic, no longer current** | Genuine when issued, but that holder no longer holds the Mark. | Check the history for what happened next. |
| **Revoked** | The Mark was removed from the Gradiently registry. | The certificate no longer proves anything about the Mark. |

A certificate belongs to one owner's time with a Mark. Each change of owner issues a new one and replaces the old.

The replaced and no longer current verdicts are not warnings of fraud. They are how the record stays honest: an old certificate is still a true statement about the past, it just isn't proof of the present. Anyone about to claim a listed Mark, or a client taking one over, should want to see **Authentic and current**.

## What a certificate shows

| Field | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| Mark and code | Which Mark this is, by name and public code |
| Library No. | Its number in Gradiently's Library |
| Holder and held since | Who holds the Mark now, and from which date |
| Licence runs to | The date the current year of keeping ends |
| Created by and created | The Mark's creator, which never changes, and when it was made |
| First owner | Who held it first |
| Certificate issued | When this particular certificate was issued |
| Fingerprint | The registry's SHA-256 fingerprint of the Mark's artwork |

Every field comes from the registry. Nothing on the certificate is typed in by its holder.

The **fingerprint** deserves a word. SHA-256 is a standard way of turning data into a fixed string of characters: change anything in the input and the string changes completely. The registry fingerprints the Mark's artwork, so the fingerprint ties the certificate to one exact recipe. You can copy it from the certificate if you want to record it alongside the number.

### Reading the history

Below the facts is the Mark's history, oldest first. The events you'll see are **Created by**, **Claimed by**, **Claimed on the Market by**, **Transferred to** and **Returned to Gradiently**. A Mark that an agency claimed and then gave to its client reads as created, claimed by the agency, then transferred to the client, with the client's certificate marked current and the agency's replaced. A Mark that went unkept reads as returned to Gradiently before its next claim.

## What a certificate proves, and what it doesn't

### It proves

- The Mark is an original Gradiently Mark
- Who holds it on Gradiently, and since when
- Every change of hands, as the registry recorded it
- That only the holder can export designs with it

### It is not

- A registered trademark or any legal title outside Gradiently
- An NFT, a token or anything on a blockchain
- Proof about colours in general: it covers one recipe, not a hue
- A record anyone other than the registry can issue

If you need legal protection for a brand's look, speak to a trademark professional in your country. The certificate gives you something simpler and immediate: a public record anyone can check. [Marks compared with NFTs](https://gradiently.design/guide/marks-vs-nfts) and [digital ownership certificates](https://gradiently.design/guide/brand-ownership-certificate) go further into the difference.

## Keeping your own certificate to hand

From any certificate you can copy its number, copy a link to it, open the Mark, or choose **Download certificate** for a PDF copy. A good habit is to put the Mark's code and the current certificate number in your brand style guide, so a new designer, a printer or a client can check the look in seconds. When the Mark changes hands, through a [transfer](https://gradiently.design/guide/transfer-a-mark) or a claim on the Market, update the number: the old one will still verify, but as replaced.

Every claimed Mark has one current certificate in its holder's name. Open a Mark to see its code, its history and its certificate.

## FAQ

### How do I verify a Gradiently certificate?

Go to gradiently.design/verify, enter the certificate number (like GRC-7K2M-9QXA-4TPW) or the Mark's code, and choose Check. No account is needed.

### What does it mean if a certificate has changed hands?

The certificate was genuine when issued, but the Mark now has a new owner with a newer certificate. The page links to the current one.

### Why does a Mark have no certificate?

Nobody has claimed it yet. The first person to claim a Mark receives its first certificate, in their name.

### What is the fingerprint on a certificate?

It is the registry's SHA-256 fingerprint of the Mark's artwork, which ties the certificate to one exact recipe.

### Is a Gradiently certificate a trademark or an NFT?

Neither. It is a record in the Gradiently registry, with no blockchain, and it is not a registered trademark.