Do You Need an SSL?

The short answer is, yes.

Google is making a major push for SSL certificates on all websites.  They have already started doing this by showing a notice to users in Chrome when they visit an insecure site.  Most users won’t notice this, but Google doesn’t want to stop there.  The end goal of this push is to ensure that all public websites use SSL certificates.

So, why are they doing this?

There are a lot of reasons for using SSL certificates, but it really boils down to security.  They’re trying to make the internet a safer place by encrypting the information sent from your browser to the server the website resides on.  This will make it more difficult for hackers to intercept data.  As an incentive, Google is also offering a slight boost in search engine rankings for sites with a valid SSL certificate.

Is it only Google and Chrome?

Nope, just about everyone is jumping on this bandwagon sooner or later, which means it’s only a matter of time before you start seeing notices everywhere.  Currently, Firefox is showing the warning as well, though Safari is not.

Installing an SSL takes some time and, in some cases, requires some search engine optimization work so that your existing rankings in the search engines aren’t affected by the change.  If you don’t have an SSL on your site, contact us today for an estimate to install one!