Why Your Website Needs an SSL Certificate

No SSL and you have no visitor confidence and no return visitors. Some website URLs start with HTTP while others start with HTTPS. Some have a tiny lock icon in the top left corner of your browser and some do not.

Websites that are HTTPS have an SSL certificate.

SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer and is a secure protocol developed for sending sensitive information over the internet. If a website you are on has an SSL certificate, it means that the site is secure and encrypted. Any data you enter is safely shared with that website and that website only.

Does SSL actually prevent information theft.

SSL is asymmetric (or public-key) encryption. This requires each party to generate a public and private key pair. Think of a padlock on a gate. Anyone can go up to the lock, inspect it, and even try to open it with their key. However, only the right key can actually unlock it. In this example, the padlock is a public key, they are visible to the general public. Private keys are exactly that, private. These private keys are used to unlock public keys.

When you fill out a form on a website without an SSL certificate, the information can be intercepted by a hacker. This site would be classified as not secure.

The information you submitted could be anything from a banking transaction to your credit card information. A hacker could intercept your information in a number of ways, one of the most common is when a hacker places a small, undetected listening program on the server that is hosting a website. That program wakes up when a website visitor starts typing their information. This listening program will begin capturing the information and send it back to the hacker.

When you visit a website that has an SSL certificate, your browser will form a connection with the web server and bind to it. This connection is secure so that no one other than you and the website where you are submitting your information can see or access it.

This connection happens instantly. You simply need to visit a website with an SSL certificate and your connection will automatically be secured.

Why is SSL so important

What if I am not accepting sensitive information at my website. Arming your site with an SSL certificate is still incredibly important.

SSL and SEO

In 2014, Google made adjustments to its ever changing algorithm for SEO rankings. A very important change related to websites using SSL certificates. Google began and still continues to flag sites without SSL certificates as not trustworthy.



Secure your website and customer data view plans here
Sites with an SSL certificate receive an SEO boost and will be the default result for searchers. If you want to be found on Google, having an SSL certificate on your website is absolutely necessary.

SSL and online payments

If you are conducting online transactions through your website, it is imperative that you have an SSL certificate. As an online shop, it is your primary responsibility to ensure that the information being exchanged over your online store is protected.

How do you prove to your customers that their usernames, passwords, and credit card numbers are not being revealed to malicious hackers. Install your own SSL certificate

SSL and consumer trust

Today Google Chrome is the most popular internet web browser. On the Chrome browser, you are able to easily spot a site with an SSL certificate. Next to the URL address is a tiny icon that looks like a lock. If an SSL certificate is found the icon shows locked, however, if a site does not have an SSL certificate the lock will be open and red text will read Not Secure. The web page visitor is not going to feel comfortable even if there is no sensitive information will be provided. Your prospective customer is gone. SSL certificates have become an absolute necessity for any business that wants to be perceived as trustworthy.

There is no denying the confidence and trust that an SSL certificate can provide to a website. Choosing to install an SSL certificate to secure a website demonstrates that a business values customer trust, which is essential in today’s world. Your financial success, customer conversion, and business growth depends on this trust.

Secure your website and customer data view plans here