Secure Server Certificate

E-commerce websites require a secure server certificate to encrypt sensitive information like credit card numbers.

A secure certificate allows the web server to encrypt data in a way that is trusted by the user’s browser. This encrypted data is only legible to the web server and the end-user’s computer.

Information submitted on web forms – like an email address or credit card number – travels over many computer networks before reaching the web server. Encrypting this data ensures that it is unusable if intercepted during the transmission. On the pages that require credit card information, our web server switches over to encrypted mode, using a Secure Socket Layer (SSL).

Anyone can run a secure server. However, to run a secure server that is trusted by everyone on the internet, the server needs to present a certificate “signed” by a trusted third party.

When browsing web pages on a SSL server you’ll notice that the url typically starts with https instead of just http. Also, most browsers display a small lock icon when the web server presents a trusted SSL certificate. This certificate is electronic proof that the web server is who it claims to be. This certificate is signed by a Certificate Authority – usually a trusted third party like Verisign.

A end-user’s web browser only accepts this certificate if:

• The certificate presented matches the private key being used by the remote end.
• The certificate has been signed correctly by the Certificate Authority.
• The client recognizes the Certificate Authority as trusted entity.

If your website accepts credit cards or other sensitive information, you’ll need to purchase a Secure Server Certificate. iMarc can help you do this, just contact us.