Are You Still Using HTTP? More Penalties May Be In Store

This nonsecure label indicated that data is being exchanged on an unencrypted connection. That being noted, HTTPS, the secure version of HTTP, does offer much better protection against a user on the same network viewing or modifying traffic. The term for this is known as a “man-in-the-middle attack”.

Google (Chrome) has taken strict measures against sites without HTTPS

In 2017, Google started to label all HTTP pages “nonsecure”. This is one way in which Google has succeeded in making the web much more secure, thus making HTTPS mandatory. Google will also implement a “not secure” label on any site that uses HTTP, (not just those handling sensitive data).

Google plans to make red and display the same exclamation mark Chrome currently uses to indicate a critical error with the way a site is displayed.

Google has mentioned the exact date when they plan to implement this change. They have given a clear warning to websites owners to start moving toward HTTPS.

Another reason Google is pushing toward HTTPS is to encourage developers to adopt progressive web apps through JavaScript ‘service workers’. (These sit between the browser and network to enable offline and background syncing features and require HTTPS to be enabled which is crucial).

Other Benefit Of HTTPS

SSL keep sensitive data sent across the Internet encrypted so that only the intended receiver can understand it. Since the data you send on the Internet is transferred from computer to computer to get to the target server, any computer within the network can see your credit card numbers, usernames and passwords, and other sensitive information if it is not encrypted with an SSL certificate.

SSL gives visual signs (such as lock icon or a green bar) to let the visitors know that connection is secured.

Google assures the users that an SSL will help to increase the ranking position in search as compared to normal sites.

This increases user loyalty and provides comfort in sharing personal information. When the user knows that their information is protected, they are more likely to continue using the website.

Limitations Of SSL

There is a higher cost to set up a SSL within the trusted infrastructure in order to validate your identity.

Performance is another factor to take in account with SSL since the data that you send has to be encrypted by the server. This often takes up more server resources than unencrypted information. Do keep in mind, however, the performance difference would only be notable for websites with very large numbers of visitors and can be minimized with special hardware.

So overall, the benefits far outweigh the limitations and are crucial for keeping your website and all data secure in the long term.