Website Security

Ensuring website security is a good practice for your visitors and you. Google first hinted at prioritizing sites that offered HTTPS certificates years ago and followed up with boosting the ranking of those sites that have it implemented. Unbelievably there are still a lot of sites using the old HTTP protocol and they are missing out.

What is the difference?

Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is the how messages are sent and received over the internet. The problem is that the data is not encrypted and vulnerable to interception by a third party (Bad Guy). Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) encrypts data preventing a hacker from understanding the content. With HTTPS only the intended viewer can see the content. This works when the secure socket layer (SSL) certificate transfers to the intended viewer. Without this certificate, the data will remain encrypted and be unreadable to anyone.  It makes perfect sense to protect your website’s data using encryption. This also adds an extra level of confidence for the visitor when they transmit personal information such as credit card information. To make the deal even sweeter Google offers improved ranking for sites using HTTPS.

Where Do I Get a HTTPS Certificate?

There are several security certificate providers but it would be wise to go with one that has a good reputation such as, Digicert, VeriSign, or Comodo. Other variables to consider when choosing a certificate supplier might be customer service, location, or cost. There are also various types of certificates available.  Single domain, multi domain, and dynamic domains each need a specific certificate. Make sure you get the one that is right for you. Google recommends getting one with a 2048 bit key as opposed to the less secure 1024 bit key certificate. So far, the 2048 bit key has never been cracked.

Setting it up

Whoever is setting up your site will need to use server side 301 redirects. This will tell the search engine if the page has a new to a new web address. This is the best way to ensure that all of your valuable SEO ranking is not lost in the transition. Google suggests ensuring that your site supports HSTS, which will switch the viewer to the HTTPS page. The HSTS will also prevent someone from accessing data while the switch from HTTP to HTTPS takes place. After the HTTPS is in place regular checkups on the sites security and wellness are required to ensure that your current rankings are not affected. Registering the proper domain name is crucial because any variation in syntax can cause problems.

Website Protection

Protecting your web site is a necessity these days as cyber criminals become increasingly sophisticated. A hacked web site can be detrimental to the success of any business. We are a Portland SEO agency that believes in website security. It is important to remember when your certificate will expire so it does not go unnoticed. This will help to ensure there a no lapses in protection. Staying on top of your website security will give your site a boost in rankings.