If your website has that little padlock icon in the browser (and it should), you're using something called an SSL/TLS certificate. Think of it as your website's digital ID card, it proves your site is legitimate and encrypts the data flowing between your visitors and your server. Proper website security starts with maintaining valid SSL certificates and HTTPS encryption.
Let's Encrypt, an organization that provides free SSL certificates to millions of websites (possibly including yours), is making some important updates over the next few years. At OmoolaEx, we've been tracking these Let's Encrypt certificate changes closely and helping our clients understand what they mean.
The good news? Most people won't need to do anything. But it's worth understanding what's changing and whether you're one of the few who should take action.
Why SSL Certificate Changes Matter to Your Business
Before we dive into the technical details of these SSL certificate updates, here's why you should care:
- Website downtime: If your certificate expires and doesn't renew automatically, visitors will see scary security warnings instead of your site
- Customer trust: Those browser warnings can make your business look unprofessional or even suspicious
- SEO impact: Google penalizes sites without valid HTTPS certificates
- Compliance: Many regulations require encrypted connections for handling customer data
In our experience working with businesses of all sizes, certificate issues are one of those "invisible until they break" problems. When they do break, they break loudly usually at the worst possible time. This is part of the ongoing website maintenance that keeps your site running smoothly and generating business value.
What's Actually Changing with Let's Encrypt? (In Plain English)
Let's Encrypt is making three main changes as part of their 2026 infrastructure updates. Think of them as upgrading the infrastructure that keeps your website secure:
- New Certificate Infrastructure ("Generation Y")
Let's Encrypt is rolling out new "root" and "intermediate" certificates. If that sounds like jargon, here's the analogy: imagine your website's certificate is like a driver's license. The "root" certificate is like the Department of Motor Vehicles that issues licenses, and the "intermediate" certificate is like the regional office that processes your application.
They're upgrading to newer, more secure versions of these issuing authorities. The clever part? They've designed it so the new certificates are automatically trusted anywhere the old ones were. It's like getting a new driver's license that works in all the same places as your old one.
Timeline: The main switch happens May 13, 2026. Some profiles are switching this week, but most users won't notice.
Who needs to act: Almost nobody. Your certificate automation system (more on that below) will automatically get the new certificates when it's time to renew. Learn more in the official Let's Encrypt documentation. - Ending Support for Client Authentication
This is a more technical feature that most websites don't use. "Client authentication" is when a certificate is used to prove who a user is (like a digital employee badge), rather than just proving the website is legitimate.
Let's Encrypt is stopping support for this feature in February 2026, with a grace period until May 2026.
Who needs to act: Only if you're using Let's Encrypt certificates for client authentication (you'd know if you were - it requires specific technical setup). If you're just running a regular website, this doesn't affect you. - Shorter Certificate Lifetimes (This Is the Big One)
Currently, Let's Encrypt certificates last 90 days before they need to be renewed. They're gradually reducing this to 45 days by 2028, following industry standards set by the CA/Browser Forum.
Why shorter? It's actually better for website security. If someone somehow steals your certificate's "private key" (the secret part that proves you own the certificate), a shorter lifetime means they can't use it for as long. It's like changing your passwords more frequently—more secure, but only practical if you have certificate automation in place.
The rollout schedule:- 2026: 45-day certificates available for early adopters who want to test
- 2027: Default drops from 90 days to 64 days
- 2028: Final reduction to 45 days
Who needs to act: This depends entirely on whether your certificate renewal is automated. Let's talk about that.
Should You Take Action? A Guide by Situation
At OmoolaEx, we recommend our clients think about this based on their specific setup. Here's how to know what applies to you:
If You Use a Hosting Platform (Vercel, Netlify, Heroku, Shopify, Squarespace, etc.)
Action required: None. You're all set.
These platforms handle certificate management automatically. They'll adapt to the changes without you needing to do anything. This is one of the benefits of using managed hosting, they deal with this stuff so you don't have to.
If You Manage Your Own Servers (AWS, DigitalOcean, Your Own Hardware)
Action required: Check your automation, then probably nothing.
You're likely using a tool like Certbot, acme.sh, or similar to automatically renew your certificates. Here's what to verify:
- Is your renewal tool up to date? Run an update if it's been a while
- Is renewal actually running automatically? Check your cron jobs or systemd timers
- When was the last successful renewal? Look at your logs
- Do you have monitoring set up to alert you if renewal fails?
If you answered yes to all of these, you're good. The shorter lifetimes just mean your automation will run more frequently which it's designed to do.
If You're Renewing Certificates Manually
Action required: Set up certificate automation now, before the lifetimes get shorter.
If you're currently logging into your server every 90 days to manually renew SSL certificates, that's going to become every 45 days by 2028. That's not sustainable, you'll eventually forget, and your site will go down.
This is exactly the kind of thing OmoolaEx helps clients with. Setting up proper automation isn't complicated, but it needs to be done right. We can help you:
- Install and configure Certbot or another ACME client
- Set up automatic renewal with proper error handling
- Configure monitoring so you know if something goes wrong
- Test everything to make sure it works reliably
If You're Not Sure Who Handles Your Certificates
Action required: Find out, then follow the appropriate advice above.
Here's how to check:
- Ask your hosting provider or whoever set up your website
- Click the padlock icon in your browser when viewing your site—it will show certificate details including who issued it and when it expires
- If you see "Let's Encrypt" in the certificate details, these HTTPS certificate changes apply to you
Not sure what you're looking at? You can ask questions in the Let's Encrypt community forum, or reach out to us, we can help you figure it out in a quick call.
How OmoolaEx Stays Ahead of Changes Like This
At OmoolaEx, we monitor industry changes like this so our clients don't have to. When Let's Encrypt announced these updates, we:
- Reviewed the technical details to understand the real impact
- Audited our clients' infrastructure to identify who might be affected
- Reached out proactively to anyone who needed to take action
- Tested the changes in our own infrastructure to understand the practical implications
This is the kind of ongoing technical stewardship that keeps businesses running smoothly. You shouldn't have to track every industry announcement and figure out what it means for your specific setup, that's what we're here for.
The Bottom Line: SSL Certificate Management in 2026
These Let's Encrypt changes are important for website security, but they're not an emergency. The rollout is gradual, the changes are designed to be backward compatible, and most people won't need to do anything.
That said, this is a good reminder to make sure your certificate automation is actually working. In our experience, the time to discover your automation is broken is not when your SSL certificate expires and your site goes down.
If you're using managed hosting, relax you're covered. If you manage your own infrastructure, take 15 minutes to verify your HTTPS certificate automation is working. If you're not sure what your setup is or whether it's working correctly, that's what we're here for.
Need Help? We're Here for You
Whether you need someone to audit your current setup, help you implement proper automation, or just want a second opinion on whether you're affected by these changes, OmoolaEx is here to help.
We work with businesses of all sizes from solo founders to established companies helping them maintain secure, reliable infrastructure without needing to become experts themselves.
Reach out if you have questions, want to discuss your specific situation, or just want peace of mind that everything is set up correctly. This is exactly the kind of thing we help with every day.
Because at the end of the day, your website's security and uptime shouldn't keep you up at night, that's our job.