Wildcard and Multi-Domain SSL Certificates: Securing Multiple Sites

As organizations expand their digital presence across multiple subdomains and domains, managing individual SSL certificates for each becomes increasingly complex and costly. Wildcard and multi-domain SSL certificates offer elegant solutions to this challenge, enabling comprehensive security coverage through single certificates that protect multiple hostnames. Understanding these specialized certificate types, their capabilities, limitations, and ideal use cases empowers organizations to implement efficient, scalable security strategies that simplify management while maintaining robust protection.

The evolution of web architectures toward microservices, content delivery networks, and multi-brand strategies has made these flexible certificate types increasingly valuable. Rather than juggling dozens or hundreds of individual certificates, organizations can consolidate their security infrastructure while maintaining the flexibility to grow and adapt. This chapter explores both wildcard and multi-domain certificates in detail, helping you determine which approach best suits your specific needs.