Disadvantages of free certificate LE
What disadvantages do we get if we decide to use a free SSL certificate, such as Let's Encrypt?An SSL Certificate is critical to keeping your website safe from cyber criminals. A free product always comes with multiple disadvantage as well.
- Validity of SSL certificate. Let's Encrypt SSL certificates need to be renewed every 90 days. Paid SSL certificates need to be renewed once a year or once every two years.
- Validation types and trust seals. Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates available only for DV (Domain Validation). Paid SSL certificates use different validation levels: DV (Domain Validation), EV (Extended Validation) and OV (Organization Validation) and include trust seal.
- Warranty protection. Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates does not provide any warranty. Paid SSL certificates come with warranties starting at $10.000 and more (based on your certificate choice). That you can claim in case of misuse or a data leakage (read their legal terms).
There are 3 main scenarios that covered by these 'warranties' where they could pay out if something bad happened:
- If the information in the certificate was not correct.
- If the CA discloses the associated private key for the certificate.
- If there is a financial loss due to incorrectly issued certificate.
- Technical support. Let's Encrypt provide community support only. Paid SSL certificate providers offer technical support via phone, live chat, email, etc.
06 May 2024, 17:18:38