Are SSL Certificates Necessary for your Website?

There are a lot of people who may wonder whether SSL cretificates are needed for their website or not? The first thing you should know is the SSL is the backbone of security on the internet and will help protect sensitive information as it is transmitted around the world. That’s why it can be of great benefit to your customers and to you.

The benefits of SSL certificates

Encryption

The main reason why people get SSL certificates for their websites is in order to keep all of their sensitive information encrypted while it goes all around the internet. This is very important since the information which you send online passes from through various computers on the way to its destination. Computers between you and the destination will be able to see the usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, etc. if it isn’t encrypted with SSL certificates. When SSL is used, this information all becomes unreadable except to the person it is meant for. This helps protect it from identity thieves and hackers.

Authentication

Apart from encryption, SSL also comes in handy when it comes to authentication. This means you will be able to make sure you are sending information to the correct server each time. This is important because your customers might be using different computers at different times. These computers could pretend being your website and then trick users into sending private information to them. The only way of avoiding this is with a PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) or by getting SSL certificates from trusted providers.

Why is the SSL provider important?

You should only get SSL certificates from trusted SSL providers. This is because you need to ensure the SSL provider has been verified and gone through the required identity checks. There are some SSL certificates such as EV SSL certificates which require greater validation as compared to others. How would you know if the SSL provider you are considering is trustworthy? Simply read reviews about them online. If you don’t find positive reviews about them, it’s best to stay away.

Why should you use SSL?

There will be visual cues on offer when you use SSL like a green bar or a lock icon. This will allow your visitors to know that their connections are secured. This will automatically result in them trusting your website more too. SSL providers also give a trust seal which instills even greater trust in customers.

Conclusion

Overall, there are very dew disadvantages of using a SSL certificate on your website and the advantages far outweigh them anyway. It’s critical for you to use these certificates on any website which deals with sensitive information. The proper use of these certificates will not only help protect your users but will also protect your website. What’s more, your users are going to trust you more. So what are you waiting for? Start using SSL on your website today.

-Mukund Pilankar