Let’s Encrypt, the nonprofit organization known for providing free “wildcard” certificates for websites, has announced that it will stop sending expiration notice emails starting June 4, 2025. This decision comes after nearly seven years of enabling HTTPS connections for millions of domains.
The move is being praised for several reasons. Many users have automated their certificate renewals, reducing the need for these notifications. Additionally, the cost of sending these emails was significant, amounting to “tens of thousands of dollars per year,” and removing them will simplify the organization’s operations as they focus on introducing new services.
Moreover, Let’s Encrypt is committed to user privacy, and ceasing these notifications means they won’t have to retain millions of email addresses linked to issuance records.
For those who still want to monitor their certificate expirations, Let’s Encrypt suggests using Red Sift Certificates Lite, which offers free monitoring for up to 250 certificates. Other options include Datadog SSL monitoring and TrackSSL.
