Let's Encrypt is ending support for expiration notification emails

On January 22, 2025, Let’s Encrypt announced that they will discontinue their certificate expiration notification emails starting June 4, 2025. This marks the end of a feature that has been available since the very beginning of Let’s Encrypt’s service.

For many people and organizations, these notification emails have been a critical safety net, alerting them when their automation systems fail. Receiving such an email often prompts an investigation into what went wrong and why a certificate wasn’t renewed on time.

Why is Let’s Encrypt Ending Expiration Emails?

Let’s Encrypt’s decision to discontinue expiration emails is driven by several considerations:

1. Increased Automation: Over the past decade, many users have implemented robust automation for certificate renewals, reducing the need for manual reminders.
2. Privacy Concerns: Storing a large database of email addresses linked to certificate issuance poses privacy challenges. By removing expiration emails, Let’s Encrypt enhances user privacy.
3. Cost Efficiency: Sending expiration notifications incurs significant costs. Redirecting these resources will allow Let’s Encrypt to invest in other critical infrastructure areas.
4. Infrastructure Simplification: Eliminating the notification system reduces operational complexity, decreasing the risk of errors and streamlining their systems.

How Does This Affect You?

If you’ve been relying on Let’s Encrypt’s expiration emails to monitor your certificates, you’ll need to take action to avoid being caught off guard by an expired certificate. Expired certificates can lead to website downtime, loss of trust from your users, and potential security vulnerabilities.

What Can You Do to Stay Notified?

There are many services and tools available to help you monitor your certificates. For example, some scripts and free tools can be configured to send alerts when a certificate is nearing expiration. However, for a more comprehensive and user-friendly solution, Chief Tools recommends signing up for Cert Chief.

Why Choose Cert Chief?

Cert Chief goes beyond what Let’s Encrypt’s expiration emails offered by providing a suite of advanced features, including:

• Change Notifications: Receive alerts for certificate changes, impending expirations, or revocations.
• Frequent Scanning: Cert Chief performs regular checks on your domains to quickly identify and notify you of any misconfigurations.
• Security Insights: Monitor your SSL/TLS configurations to ensure they are current and trusted across all major browsers.
• Comprehensive Monitoring: Cert Chief monitors DNSSEC and DANE configurations and checks all your IPs, so you’ll be notified if your IPv6 is serving the wrong certificate.
• User-Friendly Dashboard: A clean, intuitive interface to manage and review all your monitored domains.
• Flexible Plans: Monitor up to 5 domains for free, with affordable options for additional coverage.

You can view all of Cert Chief’s features here.

Don’t Be Left in the Dark

As Let’s Encrypt phases out expiration emails, it’s more important than ever to have a reliable monitoring solution in place. By signing up for Cert Chief, you’ll not only maintain the functionality you’re used to, but also gain access to advanced tools that can help safeguard your digital assets.

Take control of your certificate monitoring today and ensure you’re always aware of issues before they become problems. Sign up for Cert Chief now and enjoy peace of mind, even after Let’s Encrypt stops sending expiration notifications.