About the author: ClientHello
ClientHello is the pen name of a senior technology industry practitioner who writes and maintains ssl.sh. Articles are drafted with AI assistance and checked against primary sources (RFCs, CA/Browser Forum ballots, browser root program policies and vendor documentation) before publishing. Each page shows the date it was last verified.
What I write about
I write everything on ssl.sh that carries an author line: fixes for SSL/TLS errors, install and renewal guides, explanations of how TLS and PKI work in Learn, the OpenSSL cookbook, and news about CA/Browser Forum ballots and root program changes. I also maintain the free tools and the curl ssl.sh/example.com interface, so the articles and the checker describe the same behaviour.
How an article is made
- Start from a real question. Usually an error message someone pasted into a search box, or a task such as renewing a certificate before the shorter validity periods arrive.
- Draft with AI assistance. A first draft is written with the help of an AI model. It is a starting point, not a source.
- Check every claim against a primary source. Dates, limits, defaults and command options are compared with the RFC, the CA/Browser Forum Baseline Requirements and ballots, the root program policies of Chrome, Mozilla, Apple and Microsoft, or the vendor's own documentation. Claims that cannot be traced to a source are removed.
- Show the work. Every article lists its sources and the date it was last verified, so you can see what it is based on and how fresh it is.
Why a pen name
A pen name keeps the attention on the sources rather than on the person: every statement on ssl.sh should hold up because of the RFC or policy it links to, not because of who wrote it. The name comes from ClientHello, the first message a TLS client sends to start a handshake.
Corrections
If you find a mistake, email hello@ssl.sh with the page address and the source that disagrees. The full editorial policy, including how ssl.sh makes money, is on the About page.