An SSL certificate is a certificate that encrypts the traffic between a website and the visitor's browser. It shows up for the user as a padlock in the address bar and as the https prefix in the address. Without SSL, browsers warn that a site is not secure.
What does SSL actually do?
When a visitor opens an https address, the browser and the server establish an encrypted connection. All the data that is transferred, such as form contents, passwords and payment details, travels encrypted and cannot be read along the way. The technical protocol is nowadays called TLS, but in everyday language people still talk about SSL certificates.
Why is SSL mandatory for every site?
- Trust. Browsers mark http sites with a "not secure" warning, which drives away visitors and customers.
- Search engine visibility. Google has used https as a ranking signal for years, and in practice all well-ranking sites are encrypted.
- Data protection. If your site has a contact form or a login, transferring personal data without encryption is untenable from a data protection point of view.
What does an SSL certificate cost?
A basic certificate does not have to cost anything. Let's Encrypt is a free and automated certificate service whose certificates are technically just as strong as paid basic certificates. Paid certificates are needed mainly in special situations, such as organisation-validated company certificates.
How do I get SSL in use?
On a modern web host you do nothing. The certificate is installed and renewed automatically for every site. This is also how Nordweb's hosting works, where a free SSL certificate is included in every hosting plan without any separate installation or extra charge.
If your site still shows an http address, check in your hosting control panel whether the certificate is on and whether http traffic redirects to the https address. During a migration we help with this: migrating your site to Nordweb is free of charge and SSL is sorted out at the same time.