An SSL certificate is a file installed on a web server that ensures that the domain name in the certificate matches the domain name of the site being visited. It enables a visitor’s browser to make a secure connection to the site and allows the traffic back and forth to be encrypted so third-parties cannot eavesdrop on the conversation. Encryption is critical whenever financial transactions are being made on a site, or any other sensitive information is being passed back and forth.
Google Chrome—and most other web browsers—now display various security warnings on sites that do not use HTTPS, so SSL certificates are being widely used even on websites that are not hosting financial transactions.
GreenGeeks offers both a premium (for sites conducting business or transmitting sensitive information) and free (for sites not conducting business or transmitting sensitive information) SSL certificates. You can read about the differences between premium and free SSL certificates here.
How Do I Purchase an SSL Certificate?
To purchase an SSL certificate, please open a ticket with our sales department in GreenGeeks.
Technical note: modern web servers don’t really use the SSL (Secure Socket Layer) protocol anymore, but the name has stuck to security certificates as kind of a generic identifier, so we use “SSL” in this article. The TLS (Transport Layer Security) protocol has replaced SSL for most uses.