As certificate lifespans shrink dramatically, automation becomes not just efficient — but essential for business continuity.
The critical importance of certificate management has long been acknowledged, but its urgency is rising at an unprecedented pace. With Transport Layer Security (TLS) certificate lifespans set to shrink from 398 days to just 47 days by 2029, organizations face a renewal cycle that is no longer merely technical—but deeply operational, financial and strategic.
The most immediate risk lies not in compliance failure, but in increased vulnerability to outages and operational strain. According to CyberArk research, 72% of security leaders experienced at least one certificate-related outage in the past year, with nearly half admitting to weekly disruptions. These outages are not only disruptive but can damage customer trust, disrupt digital services and inflict reputational harm.
“Shorter certificate lifespans are more than a compliance shift — they are a business risk.”
Manual certificate management has already reached its breaking point. Today, a company managing 500 certificates spends roughly 2,000 labor hours annually. Yet by 2029, that same workload would require more than 24,000 hours — equivalent to expanding a two-person team to 24 just to keep up. The math is simple: without automation, scaling security is both impractical and costly.
To address this challenge, CyberArk has introduced two powerful tools — the TLS Certificate Renewal Impact Calculator and TLS Certificate Discovery Scan. These tools allow organizations to quantify renewal exposure, evaluate automation savings and identify misconfigured or expired certificates in minutes, providing the visibility needed to plan ahead.
The shift to shorter certificate lifespans is not merely regulatory; it signals a deeper change in digital trust management. Certificate hygiene is now a foundational component of resilience — as essential as identity security, access governance and threat detection.
What makes CyberArk’s approach timely is its focus on integrating certificate lifecycle insights into broader identity security strategies. As businesses transition to automation, they are not just preventing outages — they are fortifying resilience, optimizing budgets and aligning IT operations with long-term digital trust objectives.
As certificate timelines compress, time itself becomes the biggest vulnerability. The organizations that embrace automation today will be the ones securing trust tomorrow.
