SSL/TLS Certificate Management with Let's Encrypt

SiteSpect recommends leveraging Let's Encrypt for your SSL/TLS certificate management strategy and certificate maintenance processes.

FAQs

What is Let's Encrypt?

Let's Encrypt is a free, automated, and open Certificate Authority (CA) brought to you by the nonprofit Internet Security Research Group (ISRG). As of 2024, Let's Encrypt provides TLS certificates to over 363 million websites. More information on the Let's Encrypt CA can be found here.

What does it cost to use Let’s Encrypt?

Let's Encrypt does not charge a fee for their certificates. Let’s Encrypt is a nonprofit, their mission is to create a more secure and privacy-respecting Web by promoting the widespread adoption of HTTPS. Their services are free and easy to use so that every website can deploy HTTPS.

Does Let's Encrypt support SAN certificates?

Yes, the same certificate can contain several different names using the Subject Alternative Name (SAN) mechanism.

Does Let’s Encrypt issue wildcard certificates?

Yes. Wildcard issuance must be done via ACMEv2 using the DNS-01 challenge.

What is the lifetime for Let’s Encrypt certificates? For how long are they valid?

Let's Encrypt certificates are valid for 90 days and automatically renewed every 60 days.

What is the process for requesting Let's Encrypt certificates?

SiteSpect will manage the initial request and renewal of your Let's Encrypt certificates. When SiteSpect requests a certificate from Let’s Encrypt on your behalf, Let's Encrypt servers will validate that you control the domain names in that certificate using “challenges,” as defined by the ACME standard. SiteSpect will support either an HTTP or a DNS challenge while providing instructions. More information on the challenge types here. Please contact <helpdesk@sitespect.com> to get the process started.