An expired or misconfigured SSL certificate can take your entire site down with a browser warning. Here's how to check yours — and what to look for.
What is an SSL Certificate?
An SSL certificate is a small data file
that does two things: it encrypts the data between a visitor's browser and your server, and it verifies that your server actually belongs to you.
When a website has a valid SSL certificate, the browser shows a padlock icon and the URL starts with https://. Without one, browsers display warnings that scare visitors away and search engines penalize your rankings.
An SSL certificate contains:
- Domain name
- Issuer
- Validity period
- Certificate chain
- Public key
3 Ways to Check an SSL Certificate
- DNSFly SSL Checker
- Browser padlock
- Command line with openssl commands
Common SSL Issues
Certificate expired
Domain name mismatch
Incomplete certificate chain
Mixed content warnings
Self-signed certificate
checkout your SSL for free at DNSFly
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