What is the level of security on your website? SSL certificates are required to provide consumers with a secure experience while also protecting your company’s data. SSL certificates are thus essential components of every form of digital strategy, from blogging to e-commerce.

The user must feel safe when making a transaction, downloading a file, or simply consuming digital material. As a result, any firm that wishes to provide the persona with valuable experiences must invest in website security. It’s now time to obtain an SSL Certificate.

This will secure the brand’s own data from hacker assaults and other forms of dangers, in addition to protecting the audience.

Several strategies are used to achieve the appropriate level of security, but none are as important as the use of an SSL certificate. It’s become somewhat of a quality signal, with visitors avoiding pages that don’t have this electronic document. The percentage of websites protected by SSL increased from 40% to 80% between 2013 and 2022.

What is an SSL Certificate?

The SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate is a common Internet security technique for encrypting data transmitted between two network users. This happens every time someone makes a purchase at a digital store, fills out a form on a landing page, or engages in other common online activities.

Cryptography converts data into codes that can only be deciphered by the persons involved in the transaction. As a result, both the website and the visitors are safe from potential hacker assaults, because third parties will be unable to read the information even if it is intercepted. As a result, the SSL certificate becomes critical for the user to have a qualified and secure experience.

They’ll go out of their way to locate it. If the abbreviation HTTP, which appears at the beginning of the URL, contains the letter S at the end, forming HTTPS, Internet users may readily determine whether a website has the certificate. A padlock appears in the search bar on sites protected by an SSL certificate.

When the user clicks the icon, the browser displays a message similar to the one below, informing them of the website’s security status.

 

How does it work?

All information provided by the user during their visit to the website is encrypted, and only those with the correct key can access it. In this situation, two keys are generated, one for the user and one for the host server to keep track of. Assume a user decides to make a purchase on your website and enters sensitive information such as credit card information.

Even if a hacker intercepts the user’s message before it reaches the server, without the encryption key, it will be impossible to read it. SSL serves a very significant purpose for the consumer in addition to encrypting those communications. The lock (or other reassuring symbols, depending on the SSL type) displayed next to the URL reassure the user that the page they are accessing is exactly what it says it is.

As a result, in addition to providing security for site operations, an SSL certificate serves as a seal of approval that motivates you to visit the site in the first place. The video below demonstrates how an SSL certificate works using a unique way. Check it out!

What are the different types of SSL certificates?

You now have a basic understanding of how SSL Certificates function and what they’re used for.

Now, let’s delve a little deeper into the topic and discuss the many varieties of SSL that are available, as well as their differences.

Understanding the differences between each of them, as well as the most advantageous situations in which they can be used, is critical to selecting the appropriate SSL for your company’s unique circumstances.

Continue reading!

SSL Certificate with Extended Validation (EV)

Remember how we said the symbol displayed in the URL could differ depending on the type of SSL purchased? Validation on a larger scale SSL is one of those that display the padlock, which, as one of the most well-known security-related symbols, gives the user a sense of trustworthiness. In addition to the padlock, the certificate displays elements like the company’s name and the country in which it is located in the address bar. It also, of course, adds the “S” to HTTPS.

It is a comprehensive certificate that is one of the most widely used on the market, but it is also one of the most expensive. However, such an investment is valuable, particularly for businesses that value innovation.

Organization Validated (OV SSL) Certificate

The main purpose of this sort of SSL certificate, as the name implies, is to certify the existence of your company and domain. OV SSL additionally has two-step verification and an average level of encryption.

The Certificate Authority (CA) is the initial step, and it validates who owns the domain and whether the corporation behind it has met the legal requirements to operate. If everything checks out, the CA will display a small green padlock next to the firm name in the search field.

Although not as comprehensive as an EV SSL, this form of certificate is a fantastic choice for businesses on a tight budget who want to provide some level of security to their customers.

Domain Validation (DV) certificate 

Another certificate that displays the green padlock as a security guarantee for users is Domain Validation (DV).

This form of certificate is the quickest option for a corporation to obtain Internet certification, as it is a fairly straightforward process.

To acquire the validation, all you have to do is fill out an application that asks for specific documents to be submitted. To do so, you’ll need to add a DNS to the CA, which will check if the applying company has the necessary authorization to claim the domain.

The disadvantage of DVs is that they do not affect subdomains and are only applicable to the top-level domain.

Furthermore, this type of certificate is incompatible with any type of identifying information.

Wildcard SSL Certificates

The Wildcard SSL certificate is a good choice if you have a lot of subdomains. This is because you can use the same certificate for the domain and subdomains using this sort of SSL.

Let’s imagine you’re the owner of the domain mysite.com. You can cover subdomains such as blog.mysite.com and mail.mysite.com with a Wildcard SSL. That’s correct. With just one stone, you can kill three birds.

This form of SSL is a significantly more cost-effective alternative to purchasing several SSL certificates to cover all of your domains and subdomains.

Unified Communications (UCC) SSL Certificate

Multi-domain certificates are also known as Unified Communication Certificates (UCCs).

The term comes from the fact that this form of certificate lets you include up to 100 domains at once, making communication between browsers and servers easier.

The UCC employs a padlock in the address bar, similar to other styles, to indicate that the domain is secure. It can also be set up to operate as EV SSLs, displaying the green padlock instead of the standard one.

Single Domain SSL Certificate

This is the most straightforward SSL certificate format. A Single Domain SSL certificate only protects one domain, not subdomains or other websites you may own.

This is a viable choice for less sophisticated digital strategies.

Why you should use an SSL Certificate?

Consumers are increasingly concerned about digital security, whether in B2B or B2C transactions. This is due to a scenario in which Internet-based transactions become more complicated, resulting in a massive flow of personal data and sensitive information.

It’s no surprise, then, that regulations governing the use of personal data, such as the GDPR, have been established all over the world. Legislative bodies acknowledge the importance of digital security and explore ways to compel businesses to prioritize safe experiences for their customers.

Consumers grow more demanding as they become more aware of the news. They should be, too! After all, despite all of the precautions taken to ensure the safety of digital interactions, the threats posed by hackers and viruses continue to grow.

Take a look at the graph below:

You already have a good reason to invest in SSL certificates if the number of risks on the Internet is expanding and consumers are placing higher importance on their personal security.

These features provide visitors to your website the impression that they are in a secure environment where they may consume your content and make purchases without fear of data breaches or virus infections. SSL also safeguards your personal information. If you use a CMS for marketing, for example, you’re undoubtedly storing content and information about your campaigns in its databases.

It’s critical to safeguard these assets in order to maintain strategy consistency without jeopardizing the editorial calendar.

What is the procedure for installing an SSL Certificate?

Let’s go over how to install an SSL certificate now that you know what it is, how it works, and what it’s for. To begin, you must first determine where you might obtain them, and the answer is straightforward: from a Certificate Authority.

CAs are third-party entities with a high level of market confidence that develop and distribute various SSL forms. Customers can verify the certificate’s validity because CAs sign it with their own encrypted keys. There may be a price associated with this process, but there are also free options.

You must install the certificate on the original server of your website once it has been generated. This can be a difficult task, but if you have a good web host, the service provider will most likely take care of it.

Your sites will be able to load over HTTPS once SSL is enabled on the source server. All traffic logged on the website will be encrypted from now on.

Why is it important for e-commerces?

Because it creates a sense of trust. Nothing is more vital to digital customers than having a secure experience. After all, no one wants their credit card information to be intercepted by hostile parties.

So, if you want to completely realize your e-potential, commerce’s you’ll need to invest in an SSL certificate.

In other words, the lack of an SSL certificate jeopardises your users’ digital security, and if they are aware of the issue, they will not even attempt to browse your pages. In addition to the financial losses resulting from missed chances, this circumstance harms your brand’s image, which will lose importance in the digital world as a result.

How can you make your website more secure?

Aside from SSL certificates, there are a number of other factors that contribute to a website’s security.

To ensure safe experiences, you should make this one of your company’s top priorities. To put it another way, digital security must be ingrained in your company’s culture.

This includes, among other things, training personnel on how to prevent data leaks and security breaches by following best practices.

If you administer your website with WordPress, you may take advantage of its comprehensive plugin directory, which includes security-related options. Here are several examples:

• Sucuri
• WordFence
• Defend
• VaultPress

 

Finally, you must understand how to select a suitable web host. Different security features are available in different solutions on the market. You must carefully evaluate and select an option that meets your company’s demands, not only in terms of security but also in terms of the overall strategy. SSL certificates are essential for the security of your website and its users.

This feature builds trust in your brand and protects you from hacker attacks and malware infections. Examine the various SSL alternatives and select the one that best suits your needs!