What is an SSL Certificate?
At its most basic, an SSL Certificate is a piece of software that encrypts all information moving to and from the Certificate holder’s website. This means no exchange between you and the website can be intentionally or accidentally “overheard” by a third party, regardless of whether you are placing an order or just signing up for a newsletter.
Once you enter a secure area of an SSL-protected website, the following takes place:
- Your browser requests a secure session from the server on which the website is stored.
- The server responds by sending your browser a digital copy of its server certificate.
- Your browser verifies that the server’s certificate is valid, is being used by the website for which it was issued, and has been issued by a Certificate Authority that the browser trusts.
- If the certificate is validated, the browser generates a one-time “session” key and encrypts it with the server’s public key.
- Your browser sends the encrypted session key to the server so that both server and browser have a copy.
- The server decrypts the session key using its private key.
- The SSL “handshake” process is complete, and a secure connection has been established.
- A padlock icon and “https://” prefix appear in your browser bar, indicating that a secure session is under way.
This entire process, which is called the SSL “handshake,” takes place behind the scenes, providing an uninterrupted experience for you.
If a you attempt to submit personal information to a website that is not protected by a valid SSL Certificate, your browser’s built-in security mechanism will send a warning to you. A dialog box will appear telling you that the site is not secure and that sensitive data might be intercepted in transit by third parties.
SSL Certificates not only confirm the identity of the Certificate holder’s website to your browser, but they also encrypt information sent and received by the holder’s website.
Information contained in the digital Certificate includes:
- The Certificate holder’s name (individual or company)*
- The Certificate’s serial number and expiration date
- A copy of the Certificate holder’s “public” cryptographic key
- The digital signature of the Certificate-issuing authority
In the world of electronic commerce, security is paramount. Although Web sales are on the rise, widespread fears about sending private data over the Internet keep millions of potential shoppers from buying online.
According to Connecticut-based IT research firm Gartner, Inc., 15 percent of U.S. Web shoppers are so worried about online fraud that they don’t shop on the Internet at all. The numbers are even higher in Great Britain, with 41% of respondents to a CyberSource Ltd. survey citing security fears as one reason they don’t shop online.
If consumers perceive that their sensitive data might be compromised online, they are unlikely to do their shopping on the Internet.
In response to the growing number and sophistication of Internet thieves, Web users are getting smart about online security. More and more of them are looking for the padlock icon or the “https” prefix before submitting personal information to any website.
An SSL Certificate protects information flowing to and from the site from cyber thieves intent on stealing personal data. Names, addresses, passwords, account and credit card numbers are all safe when submitted to a website with a valid SSL.
Click on the Godaddy SSL Image below to see our SSL information: