You have already purchased your new certificate. You’ve generated it, given it a Common Name, and selected your method of domain validation to be email-based. Great! So, why isn’t the email coming to your inbox? Here are some of the top reasons that could be causing a delay in the email-based authentication process:
Issue #1: The Incorrect Email is Selected
The most common issue we see regarding email-based authentication, is that the incorrect email address is selected during the generation process. Many people don’t realize that the Certificate Authorities (Sectigo, DigiCert, etc.) can only send validation emails to a list of pre-approved addresses. These addresses are:
- admin@domain.com
- administrator@domain.com
- webmaster@domain.com
- hostmaster@domain.com
- postmaster@domain.com
In some cases, these email addresses may not be available to use. An alternate solution would be to update your domain’s WHOIS record to publicly reflect a working email address. If the WHOIS record can be automatically detected by the CA, the public email address can be used to complete domain verification.
If you need help locating or updating your domain’s WHOIS information, you will need to reach out to your hosting provider or domain registrar.
Please note: The certificate authority’s system must be able to automatically pull data from your website’s WHOIS record. Due to data privacy laws in the EU, many domain registrars have redacted or removed all user registrant data from being publicly visible. Please check with your domain registrar to see if your WHOIS details are still publicly visible via their website. If your WHOIS record cannot publicly display your contact email address, it may not be used for Domain Validation.
Issue #2: Firewall in Place
You know you can receive emails to one of the pre-approved email addresses that are mentioned above, so why are you still not receiving the email? It could be a firewall set up in your Inbox that does not allow you to receive emails from certain domains.
The solution to this would be to log into your inbox, and white-list the domains you would be receiving the domain-validation emails from (@sectigo.com and @Digicert.com).
Issue #3: Emails not Received
If you know you can receive the domain-validation email, but for some reason you have not received it, you can re-send the DCV e-mail by selecting the “Re-send DCV Email” button at the bottom of your order page.
Unfortunately, delays are a major part of this industry, and we encounter them frequently. If you have tried all the above solutions and still haven’t received the DCV e-mail, reach out and let us know.
In most cases, we are able to reach out to the Certificate Authority, and have a representative manually send the domain-validation email to you. This solution can also assist us in providing the best service possible, by allowing us to find these delays quickly, and having the Certificate Authority fixing the issue. By informing us of this issue, you will be helping us provide better service to all.
If you have any questions, or need assistance with any part of validation, feel free to contact us!