What is an SSL certificate and why do I need it?
Setting up SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) on your website protects against eavesdropping and tampering with or forging the contents of your site. Have you seen that green padlock Google is using to indicate your site is encrypted (HTTPS protocol)?
Google is calling for HTTPS everywhere on the web.
HTTPS is an encryption protocol (using SSL) that provides communications security over the Internet. You know you have SSL if your site is accessed using HHTPS: protocol. The HTTPS in your web address (URL) indicates you’ve got an SSL certificate installed on your site.
HTTPS (web access using SSL) is a communications protocol for secure communication on the Internet. The main motivation for HTTPS is authentication of the visited website and protection of the privacy and integrity of the exchanged data.
In its popular deployment on the internet, using SSL on your Wordpress site provides authentication of your website to your web visitors. It provides a reasonable guarantee that one is communicating with precisely the website that one intended to communicate with, as well as ensuring that the contents of communications between the user and site cannot be read or forged by any third party.
What are the benefits of a secure website?
- A secure connection between the browser and the server of the website they are visiting.
- Visitors trust when the website is secured.
- Protects visitor information
- Google ranks secured sites higher in search results.
Types of SSL
There are different types of SSL certificates. Some like “Let’s Encrypt” certification (free SSL used by A2Hosting and others) provide encryption, your content is secure and thus protected.
Another type of SSL certificate is one used for E-Commerce. This type of SSL certification requires a Dedicated IP address and generally cost $50-$150 dollars a year to set up. This type of SSL provides the deeper layers of certification required by E-Commerce sites (PCI compliance).
So do your homework…and decide for yourself.