To understand HTTPS security, look no further than your browser’s web address bar:
- Do you see a secure padlock (in Firefox and Microsoft Edge)?
- If using Chrome, do you see the “connection is secure” message when you click on the tune icon in your browser?
- What about the most obvious giveaway — do you see the https:// at the beginning of your domain’s URL?
All of these things indicate that the website’s data is being transmitted via a secure (encrypted) connection. This all sounds great, but there’s an imporant caveat: secure doesn’t always equal safe. (After all, bad guys can enable HTTPS on their phishing sites, too.)
So, what does all of this mean, and why does using HTTPS encryption matter to the security and success of your organization?
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HTTPS Secure: HTTPS Encryption Protects Data in Transit
HTTPS = HTTP secure. It’s the secure version of the network protocol “HTTP” (i.e., hypertext transfer protocol). HTTP transmits data across the internet in plaintext; HTTPS takes this insecure connection and layers a cryptographic protocol on top of it to create an encrypted communication channel.
In a nutshell, HTTPS uses transport layer security (TLS) over HTTP to transmit connection requests and responses via cryptographically secure connections to:
- authenticate the party you’re communicating with,
- encrypt the data you send, and
- ensure the data isn’t tampered with in transit.
These great things are possible through a process known as the SSL/TLS handshake. If you want to learn more about how the SSL/TLS handshake works, which is what enables a server to authenticate and exchange supported cipher suites with connecting clients, then click on the link provided.
Note: HTTPS isn’t the same thing as “secure HTTP” or “S-HTTP” — these terms refer to a separate (and experimental) network protocol.
Why HTTP Security Matters
Not sure why all of this is necessary? There are plenty of reasons to choose from:
- Unprotected data is vulnerable to theft and tampering. Whether it’s protecting the confidentiality of data or protecting it against tampering, HTTPS protects data as it moves between endpoints. (This helps to prevent man-in-the-middle attacks and session hijacking.)
- Customers expect you to protect their data. Customers provide their confidential personal and financial information with the expectation that you’ll keep it secure.
- Data security and privacy regulations require it. Businesses must meet industry and regional legal and regulatory requirements.
- Enabling HTTPS = good for search engines. Google uses HTTPS as a ranking factor. If a site isn’t “HTTP secure” via encryption and other cryptographic measures, then it’s going to rank lower than its HTTPS-enabled competitors.
How to Enable HTTPS Security on Your Website
We won’t go too much into the specifics (seeing as how we already have another article that does that), but here’s a quick overview of what to do to enable HTTPS:
- Install an SSL/TLS certificate and your cryptographic key on your server
- Enable HTTPS on your server (including using port 443)
- Set up web traffic redirects from HTTP to HTTPS
- Set other related configurations on your server, firewall, etc.
Pro tip: Simplify the SSL certificate installation process with AutoInstall SSL.
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Check out our more in-depth related resources if you want to learn more about HTTPS security and how to enable HTTPS on your website.