Since their creation 1994, SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificates have been required for websites that share confidential information. They work by encrypting all the traffic between your web browser and a website, making it harder for someone to track what you are looking at from your workstation.

Recently many of our customers have received messages from their web hosting service, such as the one below, stating that these SSL certificates are now required for all websites:

This requirement addresses a legitimate concern and is part of an effort to secure all traffic on the Internet.

Google recently upped the ante by announcing they would demote websites that do not have SSL certificates, and since Google is the most popular search engine, everyone is taking notice. In addition, anyone using Google’s Chrome browser will soon see an alarming warning when they go to an unsecured site:

The good news is that many web hosting providers are making it easy to add a free SSL certificate to your existing website — and we recommend you do this as soon as possible. Please contact EXP Technical know if you need help implementing this so you can do your part in making the Internet a safer place.