What is SSL?
SSL i.e., Secure Sockets Layer is a digital cryptographic binding key to keep a website’s data secure. These certificates are small data files that, when installed on a web server, institute a secure link between a web server and a browser. The difference between website URLs starting with “HTTP:/” and “HTTPS:/” is SSL certification. The “s” tells users that it’s a secure and encrypted site. What SSL certification on any website does is a simple activation of these HTTP or padlock protocols to secure all kinds of data transfer. This includes credit card transactions, logins, and data transfers, and social media browsing, etc.
What Happens Without an SSL?
The functioning of your website may remain unaffected with or without an SSL certificate, but Google will be warning all your visitors how your website is not secure to continue at. The website will stand more vulnerable against intruders or hackers.
The absence of a security key will aid cybercrimes and information theft. And eventually, it will lose its position in Google search results to your competitors, as Google only prioritizes websites with an SSL Certificate over those who cannot establish a secure connection. Even if you’re not selling anything online, you still need your business’s and customer’s data protected. And SSL encryption, evident from the green address bar or a padlock icon, helps to build trust with potential clients.
What Purpose Does SSL Certification Actually Serve?
The core objective of an SSL Certificate is the protection of client-server connection. SSL encrypts the data being sent by turning it into an indecipherable format, which is readable only by the intended user. This encryption is necessary as data before reaching its ultimate destination passes from computer to computer, and any sensitive data such as credit card numbers, passwords, or usernames can be seen or accessed if there is no SSL encryption between you and the server. The unsurpassable encryption of SSL locks the information and delivers it only to the intended recipient.
SSL Certification also authenticates your identity so you’re sure the information being sent or received is from the right server which also saves potential customers from being tricked by imposters. Hence, when a customer knows their data is safe with your website, they won’t hesitate to make transactions and ultimately increase conversion rates.
Visual cues such as lock icons improve trust as they ensure the user that their connection is completely secure and they can trust you with their sensitive information.
Another important factor an SSL helps your website with is its search engine ranking. Google updated its algorithm in 2014, giving a clear upper hand to secured and HTTP-enabled websites. This has later been confirmed by many SEO experts around the world. So, to score Google’s first search page you absolutely need an SSL Certificate.
If you’re running an online business, you need to be properly using an SSL certificate to pass certain standard criteria and audits. This ensures that the website is in compliance with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) and is eligible to accept credit card information and process it further. Having an SSL certification is amongst the twelve primary requirements that PCI has set forward. It’s rather safe to say that an SSL Certificate is indeed essential for any website to run.
Kinds of Certificates
Knowing a thing or two about the kind of certificate that will best suit your website. Such digital certificates are granted and processed by an entity Certificate Authority (CA). There are certain levels of validation you can acquire, some popular ones are Extended Validation Certificates (EV SSL), the most expensive type, that displays HTTPS, padlock, country, and name of the business on the browser’s address bar.
Then, Organization Validated Certificates (OV SSL) also display the owner’s information in the address bar and encrypt sensitive transactions mainly. Wildcard SSL secures base domain and subdomains, and getting a cheap wildcard SSL certificate can be an inexpensive alternative to purchasing several single-domain certificates. Domain Validation (DV SSL) offers minimal encryption, ideal for blogs. Hence, if your website requires any level of personal information then investing in online security is a must!
