A system, methods and devices for the secure notification of an identity in a communications network. The methods include sending or receiving a communication including a hash of a certificate of a device to notify or detect the presence of the device in a network. Each certificate is associated with an identity which is excluded from the communication of the hash of the certificate. The received hash is compared to hashes of certificates stored in an electronic device to determine an identity. The identity may represent an electronic device or a user of the electronic device.