Is Your Website Not Secure? Here’s How To Fix It
Good-looking and fast websites are great, but in the pursuit of looks people often forget security — one of the most important factors. Is your website not secure? Let’s find out.
Read also: Security Essentials Every HTML Designer Should Know
Website not secure? Do something!
First of all, let’s see how one actually founds out if the site is at risk. Here we can ask Google — the famous search engine usually pays attention and voices its concern if your website is not up to its standards. If the site is not secure, it’s terrible for SEO. What’s worse, your users will see a notice in their browser, which will instantly turn them away. So, if you’re bleeding visitors, it might be a sign.
What to do?
First, talk to your development company or the hosting provider and ask them for their opinions. Check if your site is HTTP or HTTPS. HTTP sites are not safe, and Google punishes them more harshly with every new year. HTTP is what you see before the website name in the address bar (http://). All modern websites must start with https:// in order to be secure — check any resource you like, it will certainly have https:// before its name.
If you’re using Chrome, it marks encrypted sites with a lock icon. Click on it, and you’ll see the information about the certificate.
What makes them safe? HTTPS provides users with encryption to guarantee them protection from personal information theft. And while a HTTP website is not necessarily dangerous, the browser notice your visitors see will scare them off quickly.
SSL
SSL certifications are also a must for every website. Before you change your site’s URL (an essential step for everyone with a WordPress website, which usually loads up old HTTP URL), you have to purchase a certificate. It’s possible with most vendors and shouldn’t be hard. With an SSL certificate, you’re telling your visitors that you are trustworthy and your site is safe. There are different kinds of certificates, so you should find the one that suits your type of site.
Also, don’t forget about the users who have your website bookmarked. They don’t know that your URL now sports a fancy https:// and for them, you have to use the 301 redirect. The site-wide redirect will turn them to the secure page. It’s easy to implement if you are using WordPress, which has great plugins for that.