SSL Certificates

What is an SSL Certificate?
 

As the Internet continues to grow at an exponential rate, so do our expectations of what we can do on it. One of the biggest benefits of the Internet is being able to perform tasks from home that you normally had to leave the house to do, such as shopping or banking. Although convenient, using the Internet for such tasks is not without risk. Luckily, many people have been hard at work to make the Internet a safe place to conduct business. That is where the SSL Certificate comes into play.

What is an SSL Certificate?

SSL stands for Secure Socket Layer. An SSL Certificate’s function is to create a secure connection between a website and a customer’s web browser.

How can I tell if a site is using an SSL Certificate?

It’s important to know how to identify if a website is using an SSL Certificate. Here are a few ways in which you can determine if an SSL is being used:

  1. A padlock will be displayed in the address bar of your browser.

  2. The entire address bar of your browser will be highlighted in green.

Identifying either of those will let you know that the website you’re visiting does in fact have an SSL installed.

Does my website need an SSL?

The growth of the Internet has garnered the attention of many cyber criminals who want to steal personal information. SSL Certificates are essential in that they help to thwart these attempts. If you are concerned with the security of your customers, you may want to consider purchasing an SSL for your website. Here are some reasons to purchase and install an SSL on your website.

Encryption

Encryption is essential to SSL Certificates. Information sent over the Internet can pass over multiple computers before it reaches its final destination. Encryption ensures that when sending data, only the intended recipient can understand the message.

Authentication

Remember the aforementioned cyber criminals? Having an SSL on your website validates that you are who you say you are, and tells your customers that the data that they are sending to you isn’t instead being sent somewhere else.

PCI Compliance

SSLs are also important if you plan to take credit card payments on your website. To become PCI compliant, your website must have an SSL with an encryption strength of at least 128-bit.

If your website has a need for any of these features, perhaps an SSL certificate is right for your website. Still not sure? Contact support@idmi.net to see if an SSL is right for you.