When an SSL certificate expires, your website’s security and credibility take a direct hit. Without a valid certificate, users may be blocked from accessing your site, and search engines could lower your rankings. Here's why it matters.

When your SSL certificate expires, your website’s connection is no longer secure. This means visitors might see a warning message in their browser saying the site is not safe to visit. These warnings reduce trust and cause users to leave your website immediately. If you run an online store or a service platform, this can lead to lost sales and damage to your reputation.

Search engines like Google favor secure websites. If your SSL certificate expires and your site becomes flagged as “insecure,” it could drop in search results. Over time, this could hurt your site’s traffic and visibility online. Keeping your SSL certificate active is a simple but important step in protecting your SEO performance.

To keep your website secure and running smoothly, it’s important to monitor several key aspects of your SSL certificate beyond just the expiration date. Here's what you should regularly check to avoid issues and downtime.

The first thing to monitor is the expiration date. Since Let’s Encrypt certificates last just 90 days, keeping an eye on the date is key. You should get reminders at least 30 days before the certificate ends, and again at 14 and 7 days.

You also want to make sure the certificate hasn’t been replaced or changed without your knowledge. A sudden change might mean that someone has tampered with your server or there has been a mistake in your system.

Besides watching the expiry date, you need to check that the certificate is still valid. If it has been revoked or if there’s an issue with the installation (like a missing intermediate certificate), visitors could still see warnings even if the certificate hasn’t expired.

It’s also smart to keep track of the type of encryption and protocol your SSL certificate is using. Older versions like TLS 1.0 are no longer considered safe. Make sure your certificate supports modern security standards.

Certificate Transparency (CT) logs are public records of all SSL certificates issued. Monitoring these logs helps ensure that no unauthorized certificate has been issued for your domain. If a fake certificate appears, you can act quickly.

Setting up SSL monitoring is now more important than ever, especially with Let’s Encrypt ending expiration emails. Here’s how and where you can track your SSL certificates to avoid downtime, security warnings, and unexpected expiration issues.

There are many tools available that help monitor SSL certificates. Some check only for expiration, while others give more complete reports. A few popular services include:

• UptimeRobot: Offers simple monitoring with alerts for expiry.
• SSL Labs: Provides detailed analysis of certificate health.
• StatusCake: Checks for expiration, encryption strength, and more.
• Cronitor: Allows you to set custom alerts and monitoring rules.
• Cert Spotter: Watches CT logs for unexpected certificates.
• Certificate Manager: Monitors vulnerabilities, expire dates, config mistakes.

When picking a tool, make sure it sends notifications by email, SMS, or messaging apps like Slack. This way, you’re less likely to miss an alert. Services that notify you at different intervals (30, 14, 7, and 1 day) before expiry are the most helpful.

Managing SSL certificates can be tricky, but with Certificate Manager, it becomes simple and stress-free. This platform puts all your SSL needs in one place from buying and renewing certificates to monitoring their status. By using Certificate Manager, you ensure your website stays secure and trusted without worrying about expired certificates or complicated setups. It’s designed to save you time and prevent security gaps, so your site runs smoothly and safely every day. Whether you’re managing one domain or many, Certificate Manager gives you the tools to keep your online presence protected with ease.

• Full control of SSL certificates via an intuitive dashboard
• Wide range of certificate types: DV, OV, EV to meet your needs
• Simple CSR creation and hassle-free certificate renewal process
• Secure online transactions with trusted payment providers like PayPal
• Quick purchasing and easy installation, no technical expertise needed
• Centralized monitoring with automatic alerts before certificate expiration

Failing to monitor your SSL certificates can lead to serious problems. Without timely alerts or checks, you might miss a renewal deadline causing unexpected website errors, security warnings, and a sudden loss of user trust and traffic.

If your SSL certificate expires and you didn’t catch it in time, your website could go down or be marked unsafe by browsers. This could lead to lost customers, broken forms, and failure of login systems or shopping carts.

Visitors who see warnings about an expired or unsafe certificate are less likely to return. Whether you run a blog, a store, or a service site, trust is hard to earn and easy to lose.

As mentioned earlier, search engines favor secure websites. If your site appears unsafe due to an expired certificate, your search ranking may suffer. This affects your visibility and organic traffic.

To keep your website secure and avoid downtime, it's important to follow simple but effective practices. These steps help ensure your SSL certificates are always valid, properly configured, and ready to protect your site without unexpected issues.

Let’s Encrypt certificates are often installed through automation tools like Certbot. Make sure your auto-renewal setup is working correctly. Test it and monitor it.

Make sure that only trusted people can install or update your SSL certificates. Limit access to your certificate files and management panels.

Don’t just rely on open-source scripts or manual checks. Use professional tools like Certificate Manager to combine monitoring, purchasing, and renewal in one safe place.

Let’s Encrypt will no longer send certificate expiration emails starting June 2025. That means you can no longer depend on those emails to remind you about renewals. If you don’t set up your own monitoring, you risk having your site go down, losing visitors, and damaging your search rankings. The best solution is to take control of your SSL certificates now. Tools like Certificate Manager offer everything you need from buying and renewing certificates to monitoring and alerting you before they expire. It’s easy to use, affordable, and keeps your website protected at all times.