Let’s Encrypt the Internet

Summary: Trail of Bits announced financial support for Let's Encrypt, the free, open, automated SSL certificate authority that entered public beta on December 3. The post argues that expensive certificates have held back HTTPS adoption, and notes that Let's Encrypt plans to renew certificates more frequently than traditional CAs to flush out inappropriate or expired certificates sooner.
Why it matters: The post cites the Federal CIO Council's point that always using HTTPS removes subjective judgment calls about what data is sensitive, so protecting less sensitive sites strengthens protections for more sensitive ones. A free, automated CA changes the cost calculus for every site still running HTTP by default.

Read the original at Trail of Bits Blog ↗