You can now get free HTTPS certificates from the non-profit certificate authority Let’s Encrypt! This is a website that will take you through the manual steps to get your free HTTPS certificate so you can make your own website use HTTPS!
Let’s Encrypt is a free, automated, and open certificate authority (CA). The objective of Let’s Encrypt is to make it possible to set up an HTTPS server and have it automatically obtain a browser-trusted certificate, without any human intervention.
The key principles behind Let’s Encrypt are:
- Free: Anyone who owns a domain name can use Let’s Encrypt to obtain a trusted certificate at zero cost.
- Automatic: Software running on a web server can interact with Let’s Encrypt to painlessly obtain a certificate, securely configure it for use, and automatically take care of renewal.
- Secure: Let’s Encrypt will serve as a platform for advancing TLS security best practices, both on the CA side and by helping site operators properly secure their servers.
- Transparent: All certificates issued or revoked will be publicly recorded and available for anyone to inspect.
- Open: The automatic issuance and renewal protocol will be published as an open standard that others can adopt.
- Cooperative: Much like the underlying Internet protocols themselves, Let’s Encrypt is a joint effort to benefit the community, beyond the control of any one organization.