{"id":1909,"date":"2018-03-13T00:00:17","date_gmt":"2018-03-13T00:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/atozcrypto.org\/?p=1909"},"modified":"2018-03-13T00:04:16","modified_gmt":"2018-03-13T00:04:16","slug":"http-vs-https-whats-the-difference-and-why-should-you-care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atozcrypto.org\/http-vs-https-whats-the-difference-and-why-should-you-care\/","title":{"rendered":"HTTP vs. HTTPS: What’s the Difference and Why Should You Care?"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

You may have heard people urging you to switch your website to the HTTPS security encryption.\u00a0They cite Google\u2019s announcement that\u00a0HTTPS is a ranking signal<\/a>\u00a0and that failure to switch could mean your ranking will take a hit.<\/p>\n

And that would mean less traffic and less business.<\/p>\n

But, can a product that costs around $100 per year really make that much of a difference?\u00a0And if so, how straightforward is it to make the switch?<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Let\u2019s face it, until recently, HTTPS was really used only by ecommerce sites for their payment pages.\u00a0Things can get confusing, and the question many business owners face is whether or not the hassle of switching to HTTPS is worth it.<\/p>\n

So,\u00a0let\u2019s look at the arguments for and against.\u00a0But first of all, what exactly is HTTPS?<\/p>\n

What is HTTPS, and why do you need it?<\/h2>\n

HTTP stands for\u00a0hypertext transfer protocol<\/a>. It\u2019s a protocol that allows communication between different systems. Most commonly, it is used for transferring data from a web server to a browser to view web pages.<\/p>\n

<\/a>The problem is that HTTP (note: no “s” on the end)\u00a0data is not encrypted, and it\u00a0can be intercepted by third parties to gather data being passed between the two systems.<\/p>\n

This can be addressed by using a secure version called HTTPS, where the “S”\u00a0stands for secure.<\/p>\n

This involves the use of an\u00a0SSL certificate<\/a>\u00a0— “SSL” stands for\u00a0secure sockets layer —\u00a0which creates a secure encrypted connection between the web server and the web browser.<\/p>\n

Without HTTPS, any data passed is insecure. This is especially important for sites\u00a0where sensitive data is passed across the connection, such as ecommerce sites that accept online card payments, or login areas that require users to enter their credentials.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the process for switching to HTTPS?<\/h2>\n

If you are familiar with the backend of a website, then switching to HTTPS is fairly straightforward in practice. The basic steps are as follows.<\/a><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Purchase an SSL certificate and a dedicated IP address from your hosting company.<\/li>\n
  2. Install and configure the SSL certificate.<\/li>\n
  3. Perform a full back-up of your site in case you need to revert back.<\/li>\n
  4. Configure any hard\u00a0internal links within your website, from HTTP to HTTPS.<\/li>\n
  5. Update any code libraries, such as\u00a0JavaScript, Ajax and any third-party plugins.<\/li>\n
  6. Redirect any external links you control to HTTPS, such as\u00a0directory listings.<\/li>\n
  7. Update\u00a0htaccess<\/a>\u00a0applications, such as\u00a0Apache Web Server,\u00a0LiteSpeed<\/a>,\u00a0NGinx Config<\/a>\u00a0and your internet services manager function (such as\u00a0Windows Web Server),\u00a0to redirect HTTP traffic to HTTPS.<\/li>\n
  8. If you are using a\u00a0content delivery network<\/a>\u00a0(CDN), update your CDN’s SSL settings.<\/li>\n
  9. Implement\u00a0301 redirects<\/a>\u00a0on a page-by-page basis.<\/li>\n
  10. Update any links you use in marketing automation tools, such as email links.<\/li>\n
  11. Update any landing pages and paid search links.<\/li>\n
  12. Set up an HTTPS site in\u00a0Google Search Console<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Google Analytics<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    In terms of the setup of the SSL certificate — points one and two above —\u00a0this is fairly straightforward, and your hosting company will be able to assist you.<\/p>\n

    Also\u00a0bear in mind that for a small website this will be fairly straightforward, as some of the above points won\u2019t apply in scenarios\u00a0such as code libraries and\u00a0CDNs.\u00a0However, for a larger site, this is hardly a non-trivial event and should be managed by an experienced webmaster.<\/p>\n

    Source:\u00a0entrepreneur.com<\/p>\n

    <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    You may have heard people urging you to switch your website to the HTTPS security encryption.\u00a0They cite Google\u2019s announcement that\u00a0HTTPS is a ranking signal\u00a0and that failure to switch could mean your ranking will take a hit. And that would mean less traffic and less business. But, can a product that costs around $100 per year …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1910,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pgc_meta":"","_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[59],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nHTTP vs. HTTPS: What's the Difference and Why Should You Care? - AtoZcrypto<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/atozcrypto.org\/http-vs-https-whats-the-difference-and-why-should-you-care\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"HTTP vs. HTTPS: What's the Difference and Why Should You Care? - AtoZcrypto\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"You may have heard people urging you to switch your website to the HTTPS security encryption.\u00a0They cite Google\u2019s announcement that\u00a0HTTPS is a ranking signal\u00a0and that failure to switch could mean your ranking will take a hit. 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