Why SSL? The Purpose of using SSL Certificates
SSL is the backbone of our secure Internet and it protects your sensitive information as it travels across the world's computer networks. SSL is essential for protecting your website, even if it doesn't handle sensitive information like credit cards. It provides privacy, critical security and data integrity for both your websites and your users' personal information.
How SSL Certificate Work?
- A browser or server attempts to connect to a website (i.e. a web server) secured with SSL. The browser/server requests that the web server identify itself.
- The web server sends the browser/server a copy of its SSL certificate.
- The browser/server checks to see whether or not it trusts the SSL certificate. If so, it sends a message to the web server.
- The web server sends back a digitally signed acknowledgement to start and SSL encrypted session
- Encrypted data is shared between the browser/server and the web server.
Why is SSL Certificate Important for Business?
-
Increasing site security: First and foremost, SSL certificates will protect the sensitive data transmitted from and to your website. Such information can be login details, signups, addresses and payment or personal information. SSL certificates will encrypt the connection and help protect your visitors’ data from being misused by attackers.
-
Safety for all your subdomains: A specific type of SSL certificate known as a Wildcard lets you secure your main site and all its subdomains (like blog.yourdomain.com or shop.yourdomain.com) with one single SSL certificate. That’s especially useful if you are a business owner or if you maintain large websites with several subdomains. With a standard SSL, you’ll have to install separate certificates for each of your subdomains.
-
Credibility and trust for your customers: A significant benefit of SSL certificates is the fact that they will help you gain visitors’ trust. Your website will be displayed with a security padlock in the address bar of the browser. This will indicate that the connection is secure and will show your website’s visitors that you take their privacy seriously. If your website doesn’t have a certificate, some browsers may label it as “unsafe.”
- SEO advantages: Another benefit of having an SSL certificate installed is the SEO improvement in rankings that your site will get. In line with their HTTPS everywhere initiative, Google gives websites with encrypted connections a slight rankings boost. Although the boost may not be substantial, having an SSL will give you an advantage over your competitors who don’t have certificates yet.
How to see if a website is using SSL?
Here are the 4 steps:
-
1. Open your browser and navigate to the website you wish to check
-
2. Look in your browser's top address bar for "https://" at the beginning of the website's address. The URLs of unencrypted websites begin with "http://" or you may not see that part of the address at all, depending on your browser. Websites using SSL always show the preceding protocol with an "s" at the end, such as https://www.example.com.
.
-
3. Look for an icon that depicts a closed padlock. This might be located in the address bar or the bottom status bar. If you have turned off your status bar, this icon may not be visible, even on websites that use SSL.
- 4. Right-click a blank area of the screen and select "View Page Info" or "Properties." Look for an entry for "Connection" or "Security," which is followed by the encryption status and protocol used.
If you require any SSL Certificates or interested in having one, do contact us today via either our hotline at 62955962 or email us at info@achievement.com.sg.
