Many people search for “does SSL protect website?”. Did you worried about your website security too? Then questions like,
- Does SSL protect the website from hackers?
- How does SSL protect website?
- Does SSL protect the website from malware?
are pretty common.
It seems like every week thousands of attacks have been made on e-business websites, banks and more to steal valuable pieces of information.
You may not think your website is worth being hacked but hackers don’t think in that way. Its known to everybody that Google is giving a small rankings boost to sites using SSL, So it’s another reason to give focus on your website security.
What is SSL?
SSL(Secure Sockets Layer), is a technology that encrypts connections between the user and the server. You can easily identify if a site is protected by SSL or not by checking the “https://” in the address bar.
As per many web experts, SSL certificate protects your site and users from many digital bugs, worms, and other dangerous web creatures.”
SSL: Is it really secures a website?
It doesn’t protect your website completely but it helps up to some extent. SSL secures the important layer of security for applications which is network communication. As it doesn’t prevent third-party services from getting the communication information between the website and its users, there is a big chance that a website can be hacked by attacking to the users and web servers.
If you are selling any products or offer any memberships then its crucial to use SSL as it protects users submit sensitive information. But in case your site is only a blog that has nothing except blog posts then SSL would be a waste of time, effort, and money.
Benefits of having an SSL Certificate
Use of SSL inside your website may provide you with a number of advantages.
- It can verify the ownership and helps users to believe that your website is trustworthy.
- It helps in removing that ugly non-green padlock in the browser bar, which shows “Not secure” symbol. As a result of this user shows faith on your website.
- Google gives HTTPS as a signal in their search ranking algorithms, thus it may be beneficial for boosting your website rank.
- SSL is required for PCI Compliance, which is mandatory in order to accept credit card information on your website.
Disadvantages of having SSL on your site
SSL certificate has certain disadvantages too, yes you heard it right. Most people don’t believe the fact that there are many disadvantages of using an SSL certificate on your website.
- SSL slows your website as it encrypts every byte of information. SSL encrypts and decrypts information both at the user end and server end and as a result website requires additional time to process the information.
- It requires a private IP, so if your website isn’t hosted on a private server then it may attract additional cost.
- Another big disadvantage of using SSL is “mix content” problem. If your complete website runs under SSL then users may face security warnings when visiting from secure to non-secure content.
- Lastly, if you neglect to renew it then your site will be red flagged as an insecure website and will look worse than simple “https://” sites.
Conclusion:
Although some advice to ignore SSL, I prefer to have it in my all websites. For common websites, it removes that ugly non-green padlock which helps in user reassurance that you are thinking about their information safety.
So what do you think about SSL? Don’t forget to share your opinion through comments.
