{"id":343,"date":"2019-07-11T14:55:34","date_gmt":"2019-07-11T14:55:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cheapsslsecurity.com\/p\/?p=343"},"modified":"2021-09-23T04:45:01","modified_gmt":"2021-09-23T04:45:01","slug":"what-would-happen-if-your-ssl-certificate-expired","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cheapsslsecurity.com\/p\/what-would-happen-if-your-ssl-certificate-expired\/","title":{"rendered":"What Would Happen If Your SSL Certificate Expired?"},"content":{"rendered":"

It might seem minor, but SSL certificate expiration can cause big problems<\/h2>\n

When you deal in SSL certificates<\/a> on a daily basis, you get asked plenty of the same questions. One of them is \u201cDo SSL certificates expire?\u201d Yes, unfortunately, SSL certificates expire to maintain the security level of the website.\u00a0No question, however, gets asked more frequently than \u201cwhat will happen if an SSL certificate expires?\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

When you use a website certificate or SSL certificate that has expired, you face many serious repercussions, including a failure of encryption channel and loss of business.<\/p>\n

And there are two levels to that answer: First, there\u2019s what happening on a technical, interim level. Second, there are the consequences<\/em> of what\u2019s just happened on that technical level. So, let\u2019s begin by looking at what exactly it is that happens when your SSL certificate expires<\/a>. Then we\u2019ll look at what can happen because your SSL certificate expired.<\/p>\n

Confused? Good.<\/p>\n

SSL Certificate Expiration and You<\/h2>\n

\"GraphicLet\u2019s start by answering the obvious question: Why do SSL certificates expire? There are two reasons. The first one has to do with the validation that takes place before these certificates are issued. The body that regulates this industry, the CA\/Browser Forum (CA\/B Forum), favors shorter periods of validity because it requires the entities having certificates issued to undergo more regular validation.<\/p>\n

This is important because things change. Information changes. Companies change hands. Websites change hands. If you\u2019re not checking and double-checking the information you have on file for these organizations and websites, then the ability to trust them declines. Make no mistake about it \u2014 shorter validity is a browser initiative. The CAs would still prefer to be able to sell three and five-year certificates \u2013 but, nowadays, two years is as long as they go.\u00a0And therefore, the security certificate gets out of date within two years.<\/p>\n

The other reason for this is that new technology and updated cryptographic standards are being released all the time. Likewise, new vulnerabilities continually pop up. If it takes you three to five years for every certificate using an outmoded standard to expire \u2014 it takes the same amount of time for new standards to fully roll out. And, sometimes, you just don\u2019t have that kind of time.<\/p>\n

So, with SSL, shorter is better.<\/p>\n

Ok, So What Happens When Website Security Certificate Expires?<\/h2>\n

Let\u2019s start on the technical side. When you have an SSL certificate properly installed, your website\u2019s server will engage in something called the SSL handshake<\/a> anytime a visitor wants to make a connection. During this handshake, the user\u2019s browser will be presented with the site\u2019s SSL certificate. It needs to authenticate the certificate in order to complete the handshake.<\/p>\n

The authentication process requires the certificate to be within its validity dates. Every certificate has an issued and expired data coded into it. This allows the browser to determine whether it\u2019s still valid or has expired. If the certificate is expired, the user\u2019s browser has no way to validate the server. That means it can\u2019t definitively tell you if the website presenting this certificate is its rightful owner.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s going to cause a browser error that says your connection is not secure. The error is big; it blocks people from getting to your website \u2013 effectively breaking the site.<\/p>\n

Now, depending on how you\u2019ve configured your server \u2014 all hope may not be lost. But you\u2019d have to advise your customers to click through a browser warning, which most people aren\u2019t going to do.<\/p>\n

However, if you\u2019ve set up your website to use HTTP Strict Transport Security<\/a> (HSTS), clicking through the warning won\u2019t even be an option. HSTS forces secure connections, and if the certificate isn\u2019t valid, the browser won\u2019t be able to make one. In that case, your website is completely broken.<\/p>\n

The good news is that to fix the issue, you just need to replace your expired SSL certificate with a new one. The bad news is that by the time you do that \u2013 there are going to be other consequences.<\/p>\n

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What Else Happens If Your SSL Certificate Expired?<\/h2>\n

Let\u2019s rephrase that question because people get distracted when you word it that way: What would happen if your website breaks<\/em>?<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re running an eCommerce business or a website that transacts in sensitive data, your website is basically your storefront. And you should look at an SSL certificate expiration no differently than you\u2019d view a busted water mane: your operations are shut down.<\/p>\n

That means you\u2019re losing money. To figure out how much, just do a little math. Figure out what you\u2019re clearing each day, divide it by the hour, and then time out how long your website was down. That\u2019s about how much money you just lost. For some companies, that can end up being hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars \u2014 and that\u2019s provided you catch it right away. The Equifax data breach happened, in part, because an expired certificate when unnoticed for 76 days.<\/p>\n

And losing money is just the tip of the iceberg. It\u2019s just the others are little more difficult to quantify. Say someone is about to buy something from you and, suddenly, they can\u2019t reach your site. Most people aren\u2019t just going to sit around and wait for it come back up. They\u2019re going to search and find it elsewhere. Maybe they\u2019ll even buy it. Now, not only have you lost a sale, you may have lost a customer.<\/p>\n

At the very least, your reputation has taken a hit. For the layman, that just means your website is unreliable. For a more knowledgeable internet user, it\u2019s obvious you just mucked up your cyber security. And that doesn\u2019t inspire confidence.<\/p>\n

What Will Happen If Ssl Certificate Expires<\/strong><\/h2>\n

So, to answer your question \u201cWhat will happen if SSL certificate expires?\u201d in succinct:<\/p>\n