Google recently announced it’s newest push towards a more secure web.
During the Chrome Dev Summit, an engineer from google announced that chrome and other modern browsers will be pushing to make HTTPS a standard for web security.HTTP sites are considered insecure: data like passwords, credit card information, and health content all become vulnerable. HTTP sites are also more susceptible to having outside sources modify and tamper with content, leading to poor user experience and security concerns. Users aren’t able to ensure that who they’re communicating with is the website they’re visiting. Modern browsers are even restricting the usage of power features, such as geolocation, push note, and payment and credential management APIs for HTTP sites.
An SSL certificate ensures that your users connection to your website is private, secure, and encrypted. In current browsers, HTTPS websites currently appear with a green lock to let users know that their connection to your website is secure.
Both Chrome and Firefox will alert users of non-secure sites, such as HTTP sites, by using a grey informational icon which transitioned into a ‘Not Secure’ alert next to the url with the release of Chrome 56. This helps users understand the risk of the site they’re using, allowing them to make an informed decision about what information they’d like to share with the site they are visiting.
Google believes that this push towards HTTPS is a push towards more secure web. In fact, according to Google Chrome users already load HTTPS sites over 50% of the time and spend 75% more of their time on HTTPS sites. To further drive the web towards HTTPS, Google will also be impacting your search ranking based on whether or not you have an SSL certificate.
check out Emily’s Chrome Dev Summit talk here
