Automate Your Certificate Lifecycle Management
Learn how to streamline TLS/SSL certificate issuance and management processes with Entrust solutions.
Entrust Automation Solutions
REST API
Automate your certificate issuance and domain verification process using the Entrust proven REST API
ACMEv2 service
Industry-leading Entrust ACMEv2 preauthorization support for domain verification and certificate issuance
ACME Renewal Information (ARI)
For automation renewals and automated early emergency certificate revocations
Continuous monitoring with alerts & notifications
Keep your certificates and domains up to date, preventing outages and operational emergencies
Automation Benefits With Entrust Solutions
Fewer Outages
Minimize the risk of outages with powerful visibility into your certificate inventory and the inclusion of reporting tools, automatic renewal feature, and the ability to handle early emergency certificate revocations.
Improved Efficiency
Reduce manual, time-consuming processes and minimize human error, making your resources more efficient. Streamline your processes with automated workflows for expiration alerts and provisioning.
Faster Deployment and Simpler Scalability
ACME services provide rapid certificate deployment at scale, help prevent misconfigurations at the endpoints, and enable seamless management of a growing number of servers and networks, considering the shorter certificate lifespans.
Enhanced Security
Prevent operational security risks with automated enrollment, installation, monitoring, and replacement of certificates. Minimize potential threats by swiftly replacing vulnerable or non-compliant keys and certificates.
Lower Total Cost of Ownership
Automate certificate issuance and deployment to meet KPIs and reduce manual workload. Proactively manage the verification lifecycle for rapid certificate replacements, minimizing service outage risks and associated costs.
Improved Reliability and Compliance
Automation enhances performance reliability, decreasing outages and potential breaches, lowering compliance liabilities and mitigating the risk of fines defined in service-level agreements.
The Numbers
of companies1 experienced at least two certificate-related outages in the past two years.
of cybersecurity issues2 have been attributed to human error.
the average cost of a data breach in 20243, with hourly outage costs increasing to over $1M4 for 40% of large enterprises.
What are the main challenges organizations face when it comes to managing digital certificates?
Entrust has identified three common challenges while talking to our customers managing digital certificates:
- Certificate expiration is the most impactful, which often stems from limited visibility into an organization's full certificate estate
- Need for certificate management centralization due to an organization’s acquisitions, spinoffs, rogue buyers, or combining of business units
- Need for accurate certificate reporting capabilities for audit and compliance purposes
Why is certificate management maturity important for organizations?
The technology and threat landscape is constantly evolving – from the growth in the number of machine identities and devices, to the increasing number of connections. Digital certificates are the most resilient, scalable, secure way to secure these machines (or connections). This has resulted in significant growth in the number of certificates that organizations are issuing and managing over the years. Based on the latest market data, 62% of organizations1 are still operating reactively without visibility into their certificate inventory. These organizations need a proactive approach to the next phase of certificate management maturity that involves regular certificate discovery and eventually automation. Additionally, 41% of companies1 are still utilizing manual management processes, which means they simply can’t keep up. Installing, monitoring, and renewing all the necessary certificates manually is not only workload intensive, technically demanding, and error prone, but it can also lead to rapidly accumulating costs. Replacing a TLS/SSL certificate on a server typically takes around 30 minutes and involves several steps. As certificates become more complex, their management becomes more demanding. Moving to 90-day certificate lifespans represents a significant change for many organizations, leading to rising installation costs.
- Source: Ponemon Institute 2023
What happens when you don’t automate?
All of these challenges, if not properly mitigated, can lead to undesirable outcomes such as expired certificates causing hard-to-diagnose outages to critical business systems, or something even more costly and detrimental like a breach. In fact, 77% of companies1 experienced at least two certificate-related outages in the past two years where 95% of these incidents2 were attributed to human error. According to market data, the average cost of a data breach has climbed to $4.88M in 20243, with average hourly outage costs increasing to over $1M4 for 40% of large enterprises. Entrust helps solve these issues through the discovery, automation, and reporting capabilities of the Certificate Services Management portal.
What tools can make certificate management easier?
The burden associated with certificate management can be reduced through visibility, control, and automation. The Entrust Certificate Discovery+ tool helps provide visibility into the certificate landscape across various systems regardless of issuing CA – from public to private certificates. From a central enforcement point or “single pane of glass,” the tool provides control over the lifecycle of the certificates from issuance to revocation. Finally, as the increasing number of machines and connected devices leads to a greater number of certificates to manage, automation is key to move away from unsustainable manual processes.
What are the next steps for planning my organization’s IT security strategy?
We strongly recommend that you plan your strategy with these key points in mind:
- Spend the time now to prepare for a 90-day or shorter maximum certificate lifetime future so that you can seamlessly handle the change
- Start thinking about your security model(s) and post-quantum readiness
- Consider how you pay for your certificates and evaluate how subscriptions can provide more deterministic costs and flexibility
- Invest in robust certificate management capabilities
- Focus on standards-based APIs and integrations, like the ACME protocol
- Plan a path to support 100% automation, even if it means applying a hybrid approach for different parts of your organization
Listen to our TLS/SSL Insights and Discover Best Practices for Digital Security
Certificate Automation Resources
Best Practices for Shorter TLS/SSL Certificate Validity - Road to 90 Days
Learn about the implication of the Google 90 days TLS validity proposal on your business.
The Importance of Automation and Innovation in CLM
It’s critical for organizations to leverage automation and innovative solutions for streamlined certificate management processes.
Venafi Integration
Learn how the Entrust and Venafi products complement each other for a solution that is unmatched.
Entrust Connect for Microsoft Azure
Expand your enterprise TLS certificate coverage by integrating Entrust Connect with Microsoft Azure Key Vault.
Centralized TLS/SSL Certificate Lifecycle Management
Consolidate processes and TLS providers using certificate management and monitoring services.
Entrust Certificate Services Discovery+
Find inventories and manage certificates across diverse systems to prevent outages and data breaches.
Digital Certificates Industry Updates and Best Practices
Learn how current global trends are shaping TLS/SSL certificate usage.
TLS/SSL Market Directions – Learn from the Experts
Gain insights into the next big trends in the public world, and hear TLS/SSL market predictions.