Secure Socket Layers (SSL) Certificates, also known as Digital Certificates, are files that contain information about organizations’ cryptographic keys. To establish a secure connection between a web browser and a web server, you can install an SSL certificate on your website.
After installing an SSL certificate, you can use https to access your website. Have you ever noticed the little padlock at the beginning of a website’s name in the address bar? That is the SSL Certificate that secures the connection to your website. When you see this padlock, you can be sure that the data being sent between the browser and the web server is encrypted and safe from hackers.
Why You Must HAVE SSL on Your Site?
1. Protect Sensitive Data
The main function of an SSL certificate is to protect all communications between the web server and the browser. All data exchanged between a user and a server on a website will be encrypted if an SSL Certificate is installed. This means that it will guard against hackers using your private information, including passwords, credit cards, and other sensitive data.
2. Giving Website Visitors a Security Sense
When a user accesses a website, they look for the green padlock, which gives them the impression that your website is secure. Users will feel more secure visiting your website as a result. He won’t think twice about entering their information on that website. Information security will be ensured by an SSL certificate.
3. Requirement for Online Transactions
Any website that conducts e-commerce business requires that customers pay for the goods they purchase online. Installing an SSL certificate with at least 128-bit encryption is required to secure these online transactions. When purchasing an SSL certificate from any vendor, you can request 128 bit encryption.
4. Google Requirement
Google has stated that by the end of 2017, they will flag any website without an SSL Certificate. To all websites on the internet, this will apply. If a user encounters a Not Secure message on your website and it doesn’t have a valid SSL certificate, they will leave because of the security risk. Installing an SSL Certificate on your website is a must if you want to make it visible online. It is not a difficult task; all you need to do is get in touch with your web hosting company, and they will give you the details you need to install an SSL certificate.
SSL Certificate HELPS to Increase Your Website Ranking
We stated Google’s commitment to making SSL Certificates a requirement. We also talked about how these certificates work to protect internet users’ privacy. Let’s now talk about how SSL certificates impact websites’ search engine rankings.
1. Increase Your Website Ranking
A website that has an SSL certificate will always be at a competitive advantage over other unencrypted websites. One of the factors for SEO rankings is the SSL certificate.
Because there are so many other factors to take into account for website SEO rankings, it is always challenging to gauge the impact of SSL certificates on SEO. Websites that use HTTPS are undoubtedly ranked higher in Google Search.
You will attract more visitors to your website and improve its SEO ranking when users discover that it is protected from hackers and uses secure connections.
2. Better User Experience
The user experience on your website will undoubtedly improve with an SSL certificate. It has additional advantages that help website owners improve user experience in addition to security.
When a user visits an unencrypted website without using a web browser like Google Chrome, a visual warning is displayed. According to Google research, visitors to unsecure websites stay there for a very short period of time. This will have a negative effect on a website’s SEO ranking.
An SSL certificate on an e-commerce website increases customer confidence and helps the site’s bottom line. It increases traffic and gives their website visitors a safe and secure online experience.
These are all attempts to demonstrate the relationship between three things: your security, HTTPS/HTTP, and SSL Certificates. As a result, Google encourages webmasters to adhere to the highest security standards in order for their websites to perform well in organic search results. But many websites still fail to adhere to even the most fundamental guidelines set by Google.
You as a webmaster have a lot to fear. You should start to give up on getting any significant traffic to your website if you are running it without an SSL Certificate. Additionally, if you are still using HTTP instead of HTTPS, your website is not secure at all, which makes it impossible to guarantee a positive user experience.
Conclusion
Setting up fundamental web security measures is always advised for the goodwill and success of a website. By switching from the insecure HTTP to the secure HTTPS protocol, you can avoid the unnecessary inconveniences that come with web security measures the simplest way possible. The switch has many advantages, including improving your Google rankings and securing your website. The process for implementing an SSL certificate is very simple and inexpensive.
Get your ASP.NET hosting with FREE SSL certificate with ASPHostPortal. Our fully featured hosting already includes
- Easy setup
- 24/7/365 technical support
- Top level speed and security
- Super cache server performance to increase your website speed
- Top 9 data centers across the world that you can choose.
Yury Sobolev is Full Stack Software Developer by passion and profession working on Microsoft ASP.NET Core. Also he has hands-on experience on working with Angular, Backbone, React, ASP.NET Core Web API, Restful Web Services, WCF, SQL Server.
