With the proliferation of data breaches, the need to level up web security is not optional anymore. One of the most fundamental measures is having Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate, which is symbolized by the green lock you see on the search bar. It is also the reason for the additional S at the end of the traditional HTTP which is now Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure.

What is SSL Certificate?

An SSL certificate is a proof that your site provides a secure session for your site’s users. With an SSL certificate, your site’s identity is authenticated and your site’s visitors will know that they are within a safe platform.

The usual indicator of SSL is the green padlock at the search bar, and the https at the beginning of the URL. The visual representation may change depending on the browser.

SSL helps sensitive information secure by maintaining the integrity of the connection between your site and that of the user’s computer. This is done by keeping the connection encrypted.

How does SSL work?

The SSL certificate will provide the identity of the website when a user tried to connect to the site. The web browser will check the integrity of the certificate before allowing a connection.

When the browser trusts the SSL certificate, a connection will be made, and the session will start being encrypted. All the communication between the web browser and the website’s server will be kept secure via encryption.

This means that cybercriminals would have very slim chance of getting anything from your site or from users connected to your site. If they do get anything, they would have extremely difficult time in trying to decrypt the information they got.

Because it’s so much of a hassle, it helps curb data breaches, and help keep the Internet a bit safer than it is as compared to not having such a measure implemented.

Why Business Websites need SSL?

It has come to a point in time that web security is non-negotiable. It’s a must that websites get as much security measures as possible. This is especially true for websites that involve getting data from its users such as e-commerce sites and other online businesses.

To deliver the message clearer, if industry giants the likes of Amazon are falling victim to data breaches, how safe do you think will you be if you don’t implement SSL? SSL is one of the fundamental security measures, there are others that you would also need to implement. That’s how dangerous it is out there and you should not be complacent.

Also because of such data breaches and other cybersecurity threats, users and customers are becoming very doubtful of sites. Implementing measures such as SSL can help bring back their trust on your site. Doing so will help keep customers coming, and your business running.

SSL has actually become very much a basic requirement that sites who do not have SSL are really seen as unsafe sites. Browsers will usually inform users that they would be entering a potentially dangerous site, and such notification will definitely prevent almost all customers from pursuing to get into your site.

So make sure to make your customers trust you, and to ensure that they put their trust in the right place, having SSL certificate is needed. SSL is a need.

How to Add SSL Certificate to your Site?

SSL certificate is usually provided as in the package by web hosting service providers. If you don’t have an SSL certificate, you should reach out to them to ask them to add it to your service as SSL certificates would need to be installed by the server administrator. There are also third-party SSL issuers out there that can be reached out to.

Upon complete installation of the SSL certificate, the server administrator should ensure that your pages would now be redirected to the HTTPS version instead of HTTP.  

Finally, Google recommends that the SSL version of your site be added as a property to the Google Webmaster Tools. The Google Webmaster tools can help to state the security status of a site.

Make sure to implement SSL NOW

With all of the above discussion, you should now fully understand that having SSL is a must. It helps ensure that your business is safe from the harm that cyber crooks have in store for an unsuspecting victim. While this will not solve all data breach problems, SSL is a huge help as it is.

So don’t give it a second thought. If you don’t have SSL now, have it installed right away. Don’t delay it further. You should have SSL now.

Author Bio

Kenneth Sytian is the CEO of Sytian Productions, the leading Philippines Web Developer. He has been designing websites and developing web apps for more than a decade. He is the driving force behind the company and an influencer in the industry of web design and development in the Philippines.