SSL connections are the new standard for connecting to a website. As an incentive for encouraging site owners to provide a safe browsing experiencing, Google is notifying site visitors whether a website is secure or not. It is most likely other browsers will be following suit. With this change, website owners will need to address this as having a not secure warning in place will reduce website credibility and discourage visitors from purchasing your services/products.
Here are some tips to prepare your website to meet this new standard:
1. Use A SSL Certificate.
The first thing you will need is to have a SSL certificate installed. In the past this would add an additional cost to the hosting of your website. However if you host your website with EMWD, you will receive a FREE SSL certificate. This adds an immediate cost benefit to your hosting service. The reason why we are now issuing FREE SSL certificates is we want our hosting clients to meet this new standard. A secure internet benefits everyone.
2. Avoid A Mix Of HTTPS And HTTP Resources.
It is possible to get a not secure warning even though you have a SSL certificate installed. The main reason for this is the use of HTTP (non-secure) resources on a web page. Some web pages call images, connect to 3rd party tools, link to documents, etc., using a non-secure URL. Whatever resource you are connecting to on your web page that utilizes HTTP instead of HTTPS will cause a mix-content or not secure warning. To get the full use of your SSL certificate make sure you are using a secure connection to whatever you are displaying on a web page.
3. Don’t Allow Your SSL Certificate To Expire.
Everyone is busy. We get that. However you cannot let your business get in the way of your web site’s ability to be current and secure. As a hosting provider that has operated for almost 20 years, we have seen a lot of our clients allow their SSL certificates to expire. It is important now than ever to not allow that to happen. The good news is if you are a EMWD hosting client and have our FREE SSL certificate installed, then our system will automatically renew your SSL certificate every 3 months.
Summary
Using a SSL certificate will allow your website to meet the new browsing standard that is already in place. It will also improve the SEO of your website as search providers such as Google rank secure websites higher. At EMWD we make it very easy to use a SSL certificate at no additional cost to you BUT only if you use our hosting services. We hope you do!