Internet Explorer is by far the most used browser…who am I kidding, nobody uses that junk.  Most all of our users are using Chrome, Firefox, or Safari in one iteration or another to browse the web. But have you noticed something that’s started happening this year?  It’s a pretty subtle change unless it blocks you from the site all together.  You may have seen something like this showing up in your browser’s address bar:

Seeing that little green padlock and a green https: prefix may not seem like much to you, you may have even grown accustomed to it.  But that tiny padlock means way more than you might think!

I’ve titled this post “Green for Go” after my little boy Jacob.  He’s one of the biggest back seat drivers I know.  Literally, every stop light we come to, he’ll whisper “red means stop dada”, and then as soon as it turns green, he hollers “green means go!, green means go!”. It’s either the most adorable or most annoying thing I’ve ever seen, depending on the day lol.  The mechanics of this little padlock that shows up in your browser bar are very simple.  Put plainly, green means you can go to the site safely, red means stay away.

The best way I can explain this is like going for a job interview.  Most jobs in IT require a bunch of certifications (I only have one by the way) that prove that you are who you say you are and you can do what you say you can do.  Without them, there’s no way for the interviewing company to verify that you are a legitimate candidate (I guess I’m and invalid certificate, lol).  In the same way, an SSL Certificate is like a set of credentials that your website presents to someone visiting your site to prove that you are who you say you are.  Your internet browser can look at that certificate and cross check it with a Certificate Authority to make sure you’re legit.

So…..whats the big deal?

How would you like someone to go to your site, the face of your business, and get a big fat red warning from Chrome that says “Your Connection is Not Private”, and a blue button that will “take them back to safety”?

Nobody wants that! The main reason that most people don’t have an SSL certificate is that they didn’t know they needed one, the other being cost.  Depending on the level of cert you buy, they can get very expensive.

ServantDesign integrates an open source certificate authority into every website we host called Let’s Encrypt.  The great thing about Let’s Encrypt is that the certs are free, however, they expire every 90 days.  Part of ServantDesign’s hosting maintenance package is updating that cert on your private server monthly to keep your site secure so that it’s presented as safe to your clients.

So how can we help you secure your site, or even do a free site assessment and quote?  Security is what we are passionate about, and integrity is our mission, which is why we are transparent with what you’re getting with your hosting package.  Contact us to see how we can set you up with a super fast and secure SSD server to boost your online presence!

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