One of the major concerns of having a website is the question of How to Secure Your Website with the Right Web Hosting and SSL Certificate?
By adding an SSL certificate to your business website, you can increase client confidence and make sure your company complies with GDPR.
Online firms now place a high focus on protecting customer data. You need to make sure your website is secure if your company has a website that handles customer data, such as simple email requests for pricing sign-up forms or full-fledged e-commerce shopping, to prevent customer information from getting into the wrong hands.
The installation of an SSL certificate is the simplest way to increase security.
An SSL certificate, which stands for Secure Socket Layer, is a digital certificate that both encrypts the data users transmit to your website and serves as verification of your company’s legitimacy to website visitors.
Firstly, what is SSL?
What is SSL?
Most significant commercial websites currently employ SSL. A secure website is easy to identify since its address in the address bar of your web browser will begin with https:// and you’ll also see a padlock symbol there. To view corporate information, click the padlock icon.
Information like credit card numbers and passwords can’t be captured by hackers because Secure Socket Layer scrambles the data passed between a visitor’s web browser and your website. Visitors to your website have a lot more confidence as a result.
You must apply for and install an SSL certificate on your website server in order to add your company information and encrypt the data on your website. The process is rather simple, which is good news.
Does my website need SSL?
Any business website that solicits and collects data from visitors must have an SSL certificate installed by law. Websites must encrypt user data or face penalties, according to both the UK government and Google.
Since October 2017, Google’s Chrome web browser has displayed a warning message to anyone visiting a website that might ask for user information but does not have an SSL certificate.
As other online browsers have done the same, users are now proactively notified that their data is not safe, which can be very detrimental to a company’s reputation. For instance, 123-Reg reports that on websites without SSL, 84% of shoppers abandon their purchasing carts.
Google has been penalizing websites without SSL for their search engine rankings, so your company website will rank lower than those of your competitors who have SSL certification.
Businesses are required by law to handle, process, and retain data in a secure manner under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which took effect in May 2018. This includes customer information from people who visit your company website. Your website can become GDPR compliant by adding an SSL certificate.
How to choose and buy an SSL certificate
There are various levels of validation for SSL certificates. The cost of hiring a developer for a few hours may need to be considered, though if you purchase the certificate from your web hosting provider, they will install it for you. Depending on the trust level you choose, an SSL certificate should cost you between £30 and £250 annually.
There are various SSL certificate trust levels, including:
- DV, or domain validation: This is a straightforward SSL certificate suitable for websites and small businesses. Complete encryption is used, and the web address is displayed as https:// along with a web browser lock. DV typically costs £30 and takes about 10 minutes to purchase and install from your
- Organization Validation (OV): This is a mid-level trust tier that is appropriate for commercial websites running WordPress, Drupal, or Joomla and growing businesses that need to encrypt access to site editing. The certificate contains additional company information that confirms the legitimacy of the website. An OV SSL certificate will cost you about £80 a year.
- Extended Validation (EV): The highest trust level, Extended Validation (EV), is appropriate for e-commerce sites and websites handling a lot of user data. Businesses applying for this level must meet a number of strict requirements. When users visit your website, they will notice a green padlock in the browser address bar with the company name since it adds more information to the certificate. An EV SSL certificate can cost up to £250 annually.
All three levels adhere to Google and GDPR requirements, including the same encryption, and add https:// and a padlock to the web browser.
limited funds? A nonprofit organization devoted to assisting in the security of websites, Let’s Encrypt, offers free Domain Validation SSL certificates. A lot of web hosting companies will obtain and install a Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate on your behalf. To see if they support free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates, ask your site host.
How to install and set up SSL
The company that hosts your website is the best place to purchase an SSL certificate, and some of them will give you a discount if you buy one for several years. You must migrate your website to SSL after purchasing it and validating your domain. It may be helpful to hire a developer for a few hours if you are not technically savvy to complete this.
Either upload a brief HTML file to a specific directory on your website or enter the certificate code in the DNS page section of your website control panel in order to validate your domain. Most web hosting providers can assist you with this.
After the certificate has been issued and the website has been verified, you can switch your site over to SSL. The majority of web content management systems offer helpful free plug-ins. WordPress websites, for instance, can make use of the Very Easy SSL plug-in. Once installed, it will automatically configure all of the SSL settings and rename the website to https://.
You must instruct your web server to direct any users who access your site via the http:// protocol to the secure, https:// version of your website if you want users to see your https:// website. Most hosting providers will take care of this automatically for you, but if not, it’s definitely worth hiring a developer to make this change on your behalf if you lack confidence.
Conclusion
It is imperative to secure your website with an SSL certificate, regardless of your organization’s size. While developing your online presence strategy, you should give it a very high priority.
It’s crucial to assess your organization’s needs before investing in an SSL certificate. Do you, for instance, have a single domain and merely require simple encryption? Do you have a single domain that contains numerous subdomains that all need to be secured?
Does your company require a certificate that will prominently display a green bar and the name of the business in browser address bars?
You can choose the best SSL Certificate for securing your website by providing exact answers to these questions.