GeoTrust SSL Monitor continuously checks your domain’s SSL/TLS setup for certificate issues, configuration weaknesses, and known vulnerabilities. So, you can catch problems like expiring certificates, broken chains of trust, and outdated protocols before they affect your visitors.
This article gives you all the information you need to start monitoring your domain.
Before You Begin
Make sure you have the following details ready to help your purchase and setup go smoothly:
- Domain name or IP address of the SSL certificate you are monitoring
- A Live SSL/TLS certificate
- Your domain is publicly accessable.
How to Set Up GeoTrust SSL Monitor
Follow these simple steps to begin monitoring your domain:
- Purchase SSL Monitor
- Enter the domain you want to monitor
- Review your first scan results in the dashboard
Once your GeoTrust Horizon SSL Monitor account setup is complete, your first scan will begin automatically. Scans then run on a regular schedule. You can trigger a new scan manually at any time using the “Run scan again” button on your dashboard.Your notification will be sent to the account holder by default, but you can change this by going to the notification settings for your SSL Monitor found in this dropdown:
What GeoTrust SSL Monitor Checks
Each scan reviews your domain across several areas:
| Check | Description |
|---|---|
| Certificate Trust | Confirms your certificate is issued by a trusted CA, has not been revoked, matches your hostname and presents a complete chain of trust. |
| Certificate Expiration | Tracks your certificate’s expiry date and days remaining, so you are never caught out by an expired certificate. |
| Vulnerabilities | Tests for known SSL/TLS exploits such as Heartbleed, BEAST and POODLE, along with outdated protocol versions and insecure cipher suites. |
| HTTPS Configuration | Checks that HTTP traffic redirects to HTTPS and that your pages are free of mixed content. |
| Recommended Features | Highlights modern security features you could enable, such as TLS 1.3, HSTS and OCSP stapling. |
The results of these checks are combined into a single SSL Security Rating, which gives you an at-a-glance view of your domain’s overall SSL health.
Subdomain SSL Monitoring
GeoTrust SSL Monitor automatically detects the subdomains attached to your domain and keeps an eye on their certificates too. From the “Subdomain SSL Monitoring” section of your dashboard, you can:
- See every detected subdomain, its certificate trust status and its expiration date
- Toggle SSL Monitor on or off for individual subdomains
- Add subdomains manually if they are not detected automatically
- Upgrade any subdomain to a full scan for complete vulnerability and configuration coverage.
This means an expiring certificate on a forgotten subdomain, like an old blog or API endpoint, will not slip past you.
Notifications and Alerts
GeoTrust SSL Monitor can alert you automatically when something needs your attention, such as a certificate approaching expiry or a new issue is detected during a scan.
Tip: Add a shared or team email address as a recipient so alerts are still seen when individual team members are unavailable.