Does Your Website Need HTTPS Protocol?
You have probably noticed that an ever-increasing number of website addresses start with HTTPS. Are you wondering, what is HTTPS, what does it mean, and should my website have it?
If so, you’ve come to the right place.
This post answers the important question, “What is HTTPS and why is it used?” in terms the non-technical website owner can understand.
What Exactly Is HTTPS?
HTTPS is a protocol that was first used in 1995. It allowed companies to ensure the security of customers’ online credit card transactions.
It also helped consumers by verifying that the sellers they visited online were exactly who they said they were—no redirection had occurred.
Customers learned they could feel secure entering their credit card and personal information on HTTPS websites.
In time, HTTP was no longer enough; consumers considered it risky and unsecured and only trusted websites with HTTPS addresses. That’s exactly where we are today.
What’s in a Name?
HTTP stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol. HTTPS stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure.
The “Secure” refers to added data encryption.
The HTTPS computer protocol lets you know that your communication is safe from theft, eavesdropping, or unknown alteration.
Today, HTTPS uses Transport Layer Security (TLS). This protocol formerly used Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) security. You may have heard of these TLS and SSL IT buzzwords.
HTTPS Addresses Both Consumer and Business Concerns
HTTPS addresses the major concerns shared by online consumers and website owners alike.
- It provides authentication of the website consumers are visiting. For example, web visitors know they are on their bank’s website and not visiting a dangerous copycat site
- Someone cannot hijack your website, taking your potential customers and leads with them
- Data is not misdirected or altered in transit
- Data remains secure and unaltered
Imagine that your customers were afraid to pay online. What would happen to your business?
And worse, what if hackers hijacked your clients’ information? Your online business would lose customers in no time. Your company’s reputation would suffer—perhaps irrevocably.
Today’s savvy consumers know to look for HTTPS:// in the website address in order to feel secure.
What Does the HTTPS Protocol Protect?
Businesses use the HTTPS protocol to protect important consumer data, including:
- credit card numbers
- bank account numbers
- private financial information
- login data.
HTTPS is even more important today, with many employers working from home and downloading and uploading sensitive company data.
HTTPS sites protect consumer security in other ways, as well. It limits the amount of snooping an ISP can do. The ISP will still recognized that your site was visited, but it can no longer determine the exact pages the visitor viewed. This gives your web readers more privacy when browsing.
What Caused the Growth in the Number of HTTPS Sites?
For a server to handle HTTPS protocol data, a trusted third party has always had to sign a digital certificate. Originally, this was a costly service that limited HTTPS connections to only secured payment transaction services and other expensive websites.
In the late 2010s, web browser developers made the HTTPS protocol easier to attain. Website developers realized the benefits of this encryption protocol, and its popularity grew.
Today you will see more HTTPS websites than unsecured HTTP sites.
IT Professionals Recommend HTTPS for All Websites
IT professionals now recommend that all websites use the HTTPS protocol—even if you’re not sending or receiving critical financial data, such as credit card numbers.
Does this apply to you even if your website doesn’t offer a shopping cart? Yes.
Consumers Want to Be Safe Online
Today, consumers like to see the padlock on the left side of the address bar showing a secured website. If nothing else, consumers know that your website is authentic and safe to browse, and that it encrypts traded data.
Some web browsers will even issue a warning to consumers who enter data on an HTTP website. And, this data doesn’t have to be related to a purchase. Potential clients can be simply entering their website address on a “Contact Me” page.
If you ever received this warning, you probably refrained from entering any more data and quickly left the page.
You can see why staying a HTTP site means saying good-by to valuable leads and prospects.
Google Likes HTTPS
Using HTTPS for your website will help your Google search engine ranking. However, no one is sure how the Google search algorithms work, so it’s impossible to say how much of an advantage Google gives sites with HTTPS encryption.
HTTPS Gives Your Website Clout
HTTPS enhances the reputation of your business.
It shows your website is current in IT matters. This makes your entire company appear more up-to-date on today’s trends.
You wouldn’t want your customers to walk into an outdated, shabby showroom. Why have your online prospects visit an outdated website?
How To Convert Your Website to HTTPS
This conversion will involve some expense, but the expense is not prohibitive and certainly worthwhile.
You will need to purchase an SSL certificate (Secure Socket Layer certificate).
Someone will then need to install the SSL certificate on your web server and properly configure your website. This can be a tricky proposition, even for many web developers. I have opted for my Internet Service Provider (ISP), GoDaddy, to do this for us.
Afterward, review your website for “mixed content” errors. These errors occur when a HTTPS website links to a HTTP website. (This will be a matter for your web developer.)
Finally, you will want to contact Google’s search engine via Google Search Console and let them know your site is now HTTPS. Change Google Analytics.
Changing your website from HTTP to HTTPS will take some time and money. But in today’s business world, it would be foolish not to take advantage of all that HTTPS offers. Today, it is truly a minimal cost of doing business on the World Wide Web.