Title: Certack: Proactive SSL, DNS, and domain monitoring Author: nathanchz Published: September 25, 2026 Last modified: September 25, 2026 --- Search plugins ![](https://s.w.org/plugins/geopattern-icon/certack.svg) # Certack: Proactive SSL, DNS, and domain monitoring By [nathanchz](https://profiles.wordpress.org/nathanchz/) [Download](https://downloads.wordpress.org/plugin/certack.1.0.0.zip) * [Details](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/certack/#description) * [Reviews](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/certack/#reviews) * [Installation](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/certack/#installation) * [Development](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/certack/#developers) [Support](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/certack/) ## Description Certack is proactive SSL, DNS, and domain monitoring: a lightweight way to verify SSL/TLS certificates, DNS records, and domain expiry. Set up in minutes. **What we monitor** * **SSL/TLS** — Certificate expiry, issuer, subject alternative names, chain validation, signature algorithm, and CT log monitoring for unauthorized issuance. Per-site thresholds: 60, 30, 14, 7, 1 days, or any custom lead time. * **DNS** — A, AAAA, CNAME, MX, TXT, and NS record tracking. Detects record changes and DNS hijacking attempts. Diff-based change detection with full historical record state. * **Domain** — Registration expiry, registrar, registrant changes, and WHOIS-based monitoring. Multi-stage expiry warnings at 90, 30, 14, 7, and 1 days before lapse. **WordPress integration** One-click SSL checks from Settings Certack, a dashboard widget with days remaining, daily automatic checks with email warnings (opt-in), and a Gutenberg block plus `[ certack_checker]` shortcode that sends your visitors to the checker on certack.com. Results are cached for 12 hours and frontend checks are rate-limited, so the plugin never slows down your site. No external request happens without your explicit action or opt-in. **Why Certack** * **Unauthorized-issuance detection.** Certack watches Certificate Transparency logs and alerts you if a new certificate is issued for your domain that you did not request — a common early sign of a man-in-the-middle setup or a phishing campaign using your brand. * **Per-site thresholds.** Alerts are pre-configured for 60, 30, 14, 7 and 1 days before expiry — adjust the thresholds per site if you like. * **Nine alert channels.** Email, Slack, Discord, Microsoft Teams, Telegram, DingTalk, Feishu, PagerDuty, and generic webhooks. * **Programmable.** REST API with Bearer-token authentication on every plan, plus a native MCP server so AI assistants can manage monitoring directly. * **Nothing to install.** No agent, no DNS changes — add a domain and checks begin within thirty seconds. Learn more at [Certack](https://certack.com/) — proactive SSL, DNS, and domain monitoring. Read the [API docs](https://certack.com/docs/api) or start with the [SSL expiry guide](https://certack.com/guides/how-to-monitor-ssl-certificate-expiration). ### External services This plugin connects to Certack’s SSL checking API to verify certificate details. **What the service is:** Certack’s SSL checker retrieves public certificate information for a domain (issuer, expiry date, signature algorithm, SAN list) by connecting to that domain’s HTTPS endpoint. It also optionally registers a domain for continuous monitoring. **What data is sent and when:** – When you click “Check now”: the domain name is sent to `https://certack.com/api/public/check-ssl`. No personal data is transmitted.– When you save an API key and click “Get email alerts”: the domain name, check types( ssl/dns/domain), and alert threshold are sent to `https://api.certack.com/v1/sites`. The API key authenticates the request. – When automatic daily checks are enabled( opt-in): the domain name is sent once per day to the same SSL check endpoint. **Terms of Service and Privacy Policy:** – [Terms of Service](https://certack.com/terms)– [Privacy Policy](https://certack.com/privacy) ## Blocks This plugin provides 1 block. * Certack SSL Checker ## Installation 1. Upload the `certack` folder to `/wp-content/plugins/` or install from Plugins Add New. 2. Activate the plugin. 3. Go to Settings Certack and click “Check now”. 4. (Optional) Paste a `ct_…` API key from [Certack](https://certack.com/) to unlock DNS + domain monitoring and continuous alerts. ## FAQ ### How can I check a certificate’s expiry date without an account? Use the free SSL Checker on our homepage: type any domain and you instantly see the issuer, validity dates and certificate chain — no signup required. When you also want to be notified before expiry, create a free account and add the domain to monitoring. ### How do I monitor SSL certificate expiration? 1. Sign up for Certack — start on the free plan, no credit card needed. 2. Add the domain or host you want to monitor. 3. Alerts are pre-configured for 60, 30, 14, 7 and 1 days before expiry — adjust the thresholds per site if you like. 4. Pick your notification channels: email, Slack, Discord, Microsoft Teams, Telegram, DingTalk, Feishu, PagerDuty or a webhook. Done — you will receive an alert whenever any of your certificates is approaching its expiration date. ### What kind of certificates and domains can I monitor? Any SSL/TLS certificate on any public host, from any certificate authority — shared hosting, CDNs, load balancers, appliances. You can also monitor domain registration( expiry, registrar, WHOIS changes) and DNS records (A, AAAA, CNAME, MX, TXT, NS). Nothing to install and no DNS changes required. ### Which certificate details does Certack monitor? Everything that matters for certificate health: issuer, expiry date, subject and SAN entries, signature algorithm, and the full certificate chain. Certack also watches Certificate Transparency logs and alerts you if a new certificate is issued for your domain that you did not request. ### Can I monitor a site behind Cloudflare or another CDN? Yes. Certack monitors the certificate actually served at the public endpoint your visitors see — for Cloudflare-fronted sites that is the edge certificate. If you also want to watch the origin certificate itself, add the origin hostname as a separate site. ### Does the WordPress plugin work without an API key? Yes. One-click SSL checks use Certack’s free public checker. An API key unlocks continuous monitoring, DNS and domain-expiry checks. ### Will the plugin slow down my site? No. Results are cached for 12 hours, frontend checks are rate-limited, and no external request happens without your explicit action or opt-in. ## Reviews There are no reviews for this plugin. ## Contributors & Developers “Certack: Proactive SSL, DNS, and domain monitoring” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin. Contributors * [ nathanchz ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/nathanchz/) [Translate “Certack: Proactive SSL, DNS, and domain monitoring” into your language.](https://translate.wordpress.org/projects/wp-plugins/certack) ### Interested in development? [Browse the code](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/certack/), check out the [SVN repository](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/certack/), or subscribe to the [development log](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/certack/) by [RSS](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/certack/?limit=100&mode=stop_on_copy&format=rss). ## Changelog #### 1.0.0 * Initial release: one-click SSL check, dashboard widget, daily opt-in checks, Gutenberg CTA block + shortcode, optional API-key connection. ## Meta * Version **1.0.0** * Last updated **6 hours ago** * Active installations **Fewer than 10** * WordPress version ** 6.0 or higher ** * Tested up to **7.1.2** * PHP version ** 7.4 or higher ** * Language * [English (US)](https://wordpress.org/plugins/certack/) * Tags * [certificate](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/certificate/)[dns](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/dns/) [domain](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/domain/)[monitoring](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/monitoring/) [ssl](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/tags/ssl/) * [Advanced View](https://kal.wordpress.org/plugins/certack/advanced/) ## Ratings No reviews have been submitted yet. [Your review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/certack/reviews/#new-post) [See all reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/certack/reviews/) ## Contributors * [ nathanchz ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/nathanchz/) ## Support Got something to say? Need help? [View support forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/certack/)