Your website security should be one of your top priorities, but did you know that it is Google’s top priority as well? That is why in 2014, Google called for something called  HTTPS to be used universally across the worldwide web.

HTTPS has been around a while, you most likely have seen HTTPS before, you just haven’t realised it, for example in your URL (https://) or even when you get asked if you want to direct to other sites on Facebook, or use internet banking So what does HTTPS do? It helps to protect your data when you share your information online and it is also designed to protect your website site as well. That’s where something called Secure Socket Layer (SSL) comes in.

What is SSL?
SSL allows you to feed information between the browser and the server while also making sure that it is kept completely private. If your site does not have SSL then you run the risk of being hacked. One way to see if you have SSL or not would be to:

• See if your site has https:// and a little padlock icon on the left hand side.
• Click the lock to look at the connection.
• Click the certification symbol to see if your site has any security at this moment in time.

How SSL Affects SEO
Having SSL will only affect your site by around 1% at present but Google have warned people that this is going to increase and it will actually have an effect on your ranking.

Google want to have HTTPS everywhere because this means that the sites displayed on the search engine are more secure, so if your website is just HTTP then you really do need to think about getting it onto HTTPS, not just for Google, but for you and your customers as well.

We’re switching over right now in fact, and we can help you to know and understand which of your pages need the encryption as well as what you can do to help keep your site more secure in the future.

So what does it cost?
To have an SSL you need what is called a Security Certificate, these are renewed annually and start at £99 for a simple one, up to £300 for the most advanced. We can help you identify the level of certificate you need and take care of all of the details, just drop us a line or call us.