In the new digital age, there is a huge dependence on digital services. Organisations are forced to prioritise SSL certificate renewals to maintain secure and uninterrupted operations. Manual renewal processes often lead to lapses, causing the website to go down and rendering services unavailable. Ensuring efficiency in certificate renewal remains a key challenge, especially with an organisation’s growing number of digital assets. Automating certificate renewals is becoming increasingly essential for organisations to ensure security and business continuity.
In addition to traditional certificate management concerns, organisations must now consider Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) and the growing need for crypto-agility. As quantum computing advances, organisations must ensure their cryptographic infrastructure is agile enough to adapt to future security requirements.
Challenges of SSL Certificate Renewal
Managing SSL certificate renewal can be a time-consuming challenge for many organisations, particularly those with numerous certificates across different environments. Some common challenges include:
- Manual Tracking Issues – Organisations struggle to keep track of where certificates are deployed and when they expire.
- Outdated Algorithms – Certificates with outdated algorithms are still in use and expose organisations to cyber threats.
- Operational Disruptions – Unexpected certificate expiration can cause service downtime, adversely affecting business reputation.
- Scalability –Managing an increasing number of SSL certificates manually becomes impractical.
Best Practices for Streamlining SSL Certificate Renewal
To address these challenges, these are some best practices that organisations can work towards implementing:
- Automated Certificate Discovery – Set up scheduled scans to discover and inventorize certificates within the organisation.
- Enable Automated Renewal Alerts – Set up notifications and alerts to proactively manage expiration dates.
- Centralize Certificate Visibility – Utilise a single dashboard to track all certificates across different Certificate Authorities and different environments.
- Prepare for Crypto-Agility – Ensure your certificate management system is agile enough to replace outdated algorithms with ease.
Tools for SSL Certificate Lifecycle Management
For better efficiency in SSL certificate renewals, organisations can leverage Certificate Lifecycle Management (CLM) solutions that help to automate and streamline certificate management processes. Netrust offers a wide range of advanced CLM solutions, available as on-premise or software-as-a-service, with capabilities to support multiple CAs, both public and private.
Where do we start?
Ensuring timely certificate renewal is critical to maintaining secure and uninterrupted business operations. Organisations can minimise security risks, reduce operational overhead, and maintain compliance with industry regulations by adopting best practices and implementing advanced CLM solutions.
Netrust provides services and solutions to help organisations seamlessly manage their SSL certificates. Contact us at https://www.netrust.net/contact-us/ to learn how we can enhance your SSL security posture and streamline certificate lifecycle management.
Interested in learning more? Check out this related blog here:
Mastering Certificate Discovery: How to Identify and Inventory All Digital Certificates
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