Shrinking TLS certificate lifecycles: What to know

When I think about the shift in TLS (Transport Layer Security) certificate lifecycles, I can’t help comparing it to Y2K. Back then, everyone understood the cliff we were running toward. Today, the challenge is just as real but far less visible. These certificates are the backbone of secure digital communication. They’re everywhere: connecting browsers to websites, systems to services, and networks to infrastructure.

Right now, most organizations rotate them once a year, and that alone can feel painful. But as maximum validity periods shrink to 200 days, then 100, and ultimately 47 days by 2029, the operational load becomes enormous. Unlike Y2K, where we had one date to plan around, this is an ongoing cycle that will impact every system that relies on encrypted communication.

The real risks of ignoring the shift

Certificates aren’t something you “see.” They’re buried inside systems, services, devices, and integrations. The scale makes this transition harder than any time-based event because there’s no single deadline and because certificates truly exist everywhere.

If companies decide to “wait and see,” the consequences will be felt quickly and painfully.

• Business continuity risks: The most immediate risk is services outages. That means customers see error screens, internal teams lose access to tools they depend on, APIs fail, and critical workflows break without warning.

• Operational risks: Manual processes break at scale. As rotation cycles shrink, the likelihood of human error skyrockets. All it takes is one missed certificate to take down a revenue-generating service.

• Governance and audit risks: Cyber insurers will begin evaluating TLS governance and pricing premiums accordingly. While there’s no regulatory fine today, the real penalty is your services going down.

Simply put: if these certificates fail, your business stops. Revenue stops. Employees can’t work. Customers can’t access your services. This is a business continuity issue.

Quick fixes won’t work

There is no quick fix. The issue is scale. Manually rotating a handful of certificates once a year is one thing. But when you must rotate hundreds or thousands every few weeks, no amount of human effort can keep up. Even smaller companies can’t “muscle” their way through this. The risk of forgetting one certificate, buried deep in an integration you don’t remember exists, becomes too high.

This is fundamentally a scale and automation problem. Without automation, outages become inevitable.

The long–term, scalable solution

There are three steps every organization needs to take:

1. Conduct an assessment

You need visibility. Most organizations don’t even know how many certificates they have or where they’re deployed. Using CMDB data, scanning tools, or third-party assessments, the first step is creating a complete inventory.

2. Select a TLS automation Platform

Active Directory or Intune won’t solve this problem. You need a dedicated certificate automation tool capable of handling rapid rotations at scale. Leaders in the space include:

• Venafi (CyberArk)
• AppViewX
• DigiCert

Choosing the right vendor depends on your environment, volume, and integration needs.

3. Implement with a trusted partner

Even the best tool requires proper deployment to avoid new security gaps. That’s where a trusted partner comes in, helping organizations assess exposure, select the right platform, and implement automation securely and efficiently.

If I could give one directive to technology leaders, it’s this…

If you begin preparing now, assessing your environment, choosing the right automation tool, and laying the operational groundwork, you’ll be in a strong position long before the March 2029 deadline. But if you wait, the complexity will only grow. This shift is unavoidable, and every organization will have to face it. Acting early ensures you’re ready before the new cycle catches you off guard.

Contact our team to build your PKI certificate management strategy today.