[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]As you may recall in recent announcements, I mentioned the importance of installing SSL Certificates on your website. New requirements in 2018 essentially require all websites to have an SSL Certificate. If you would like to review what it is and what it does, please refer to this article here.
How do I know if my site needs an SSL Certificate?
Here’s how to determine if you need the certificate.
- Head over to your website and look at the address bar
- Do you see an “s” in the website address? Here’s an example: http://kitzmillermedia.com
- If you only see http://, you will need an SSL Certificate
How important is this?
Pretty important. This change mainly informs website visitors via a pop-up or an icon in the address bar that you do not have a certificate installed. For visitors, it’s an indicator that your website isn’t secure. If you have any form or log in on your site, you need the certificate. If you do e-commerce, you most certainly need it. Long story short, all websites will need this in 2018.
Another determining factor is that Google will start penalizing websites that do not have SSL Certificates, which means you may lose ranking in search results.
My site needs the certificate, what now?
Contact me as soon as possible. Many of my clients are already getting messages about not having the certificate installed, so it’s important to act quickly.
How much does it cost?
Not much. It depends on how your hosting account is set up. The only way to know for sure is to contact your hosting provider, which I will do on your behalf and let you know what the damage is.
As a WP Care Plan member am I covered?
While the WP Care Plan does cover many important website security features such as daily backups, software maintenance, hack prevention and disaster recovery, it does not include SSL Certificates. This is primarily due to the involvement of third-party certificate providers, and certificate costs vary from account to account.
Email or call if you would like to get this taken care of in the coming weeks. I’d be happy to take any questions as well.
Even if I didn’t build your website, I could still coach you through installing an SSL Certificate on your site. Just let me know.
Until next time![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]