Is startssl.com Safe?

Surprised nobody ever threw them under a bus for the Heartbleed revocation fee controversy. At least all affected certificates have expired by now. EDIT: Browsers are now starting to un-trust this CA for various trust violations. Best to switch to Let's Encrypt if you want a free DV certificate as you won't get burned there if/when the next Heartbleed happens.

The log in side of this site made my Firefox, Google Chrome and Safari unstable; they request your personal contact information, but then their "so secure" system gives you the following message which is not expected from a secure place providing SSL Certificates; BE AWARE. Message at log in time >>> "SSL connection error Unable to make a secure connection to the server. This may be a problem with the server, or it may be requiring a client authentication certificate that you don't have. Error 107 (net::ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR): SSL protocol error."

A fresh approach to being a Certificate Authority, StartSSL only charge according to the effort they invest. This means that low assurance Class 1 certificates are free, even though similar Domain Validated server certificates cost from other Certificate Authorities. Other types of certificate, such as email certificates, are also free. They offer inexpensive services at higher levels of validation. Browser acceptance is now excellent; Microsoft, Apple and Mozilla (Firefox) now include their root certificate. At the time of writing, Opera is the only major browser not including support though they have applied; hopefully such support will be forthcoming in the future. For a single annual payment (of US$29.90 at the time of writing), I'm able to secure all my electronic activities with email certificates that include my verified name and location, a wildcard server certificate and a code signing certificate. (Note: I have no links with StartCom other than as a satisfied customer).