In 2018, we gently started requesting of our clients that SSL (Security) certificates be installed on our websites. (Original article here)
In 2019, we mandated the installation for each client. By and large, our clients understood the need, and agreed to allow us to do the work.
Today, I am proud to say that every website that is hosted, maintained and supported by RocklandWeb holds an SSL Certificate.
If you’re reading this, what follows is a kind of technical explanation why an SSL Certificate is important. If you trust us, then feel free to gloss over the information. We’ve got you covered. If you have any concerns – please continue reading.
The reasons for adding an SSL Certificate to your website are numerous. I will lay out several of the most important reasons below, but the most important reason (data security), is the one you should focus on the most.
1. Data Security
2. No Penalty from Google
3. Industry Standard
4. Increases Trust Factor with Website Customers / Visitors
5. Better SEO Ranking for your website
1. Data Security: With an SSL Certificate installed, if your customers submit any information to you, it is less likely that hackers can intercept that information.
(Not just payment info – even an email address, or a password, or if you are logging in as an administrator)
2. No Penalty from Google: At this point, if you don’t have an SSL certificate, Google Chrome (and most other web browsers) warn you – and all your customers before they visit the website, that your site is “insecure”.
3. SSL is Industry Standard: The Google Security Team announced that the 56th version of Google Chrome that they will visually alert users when they’re not on a secure website with an SSL certificate.
At the time of this writing, we’re up to Google Chrome version 83.
Note that in order for someone to reach your website without an SSL Certificate, they would need to click on [Advanced], and agree to navigate to website (Which again Google will warn is “unsafe”.
This is because SSL certificates offer more secure data transfer between servers, with less chance of interception. It benefits Google to direct people to websites that are secure with an SSL Certificate.
4. Increases Customer Trust Factor: As a visual aesthetic, websites with an SSL Certificate provide an increased level of trust with customers. Basically, when they see the green bar indicating that the website is “secure”, they will be very likely to provide you with some of their personal information. Please see below graphic.
5. Better SEO ranking: SSL and HTTPS are not only valuable to security, but they’re also going to be helpful when it comes to SEO, ecommerce, and visual notifications about the security of a page in Google Chrome.
If you have any further questions, please contact us at (845) 877-7333, xt. 1. We’ll look forward to hearing from you, and walking you through the installation process if need be.
Have a great week.
~ The RocklandWeb Team