Have you ever paid attention to how some website URLs start with "http://"? And how the other ones start with "https://"?
The extra "s" can typically be noticed when you browse websites that work with sensitive information like credit card details and other personal data.
So what exactly does that extra "s" mean and why does it appear?
Generally speaking, the extra "s" shows that the connection is encrypted and secure as well as that the website is a trustworthy one. The data you share with websites like that is well-protected. This technology is called SSL (Secure Sockets Layer).
Now let's get into more details about why SSL matters so much, and why your SMM panel should have an SSL certificate too.
What is an SSL certificate?
An SSL certificate is a small data file that provides authentication for a website and helps establish an encrypted connection. When an SSL certificate gets installed on a server, it activates the padlock and the HTTPS protocol as well as ensures secure connections from a server to a browser.
SSL certificates contain the following information:
— the name of the domain it was issued for;
— which person, company or device it's meant for;
— the name and digital signature of the certificate authority that issued it;
— its issue and expiration dates;
— associated subdomains;
— the public key (the private key stays secret).
The public key and the private key are used to encrypt and decrypt data. If data is encrypted with the public key, it can only be decrypted with the private key, and vice versa.
Why are SSL certificates so important?
If an SMM panel or any other website is not secure, hackers get easily get access to the information you enter there. Very often hackers install listening programs that are difficult or sometimes even impossible to detect on a server that hosts a website. When website visitors enter their personal information, those programs capture everything and send all that data back to hackers.
However, if a website is encrypted with SSL, your browser will check the certificate and then bind itself to the server that hosts that website and provide a secure connection. This is how you can ensure that no one besides you and the website can see the information you enter there.
An SSL certificate helps secure such personal data as:
— login credentials;
— bank account information and credit card transactions;
— personally identifiable information (full name, address, date of birth, telephone number);
— proprietary information;
— contracts and legal documents;
— medical records.
SSL certificates have 4 main purposes:
1. Website encryption. It is possible due to the public-private key pairing that we mentioned above.
2. Authentication. An SSL certificate helps your browser verify that the server it's connected to actually owns the domain, which prevents domain spoofing (creating a fake version of the website) and other attacks.
3. HTTPS. A website needs to have an SSL certificate for an HTTPS address, which is especially important for businesses. HTTPS is a secure version of HTTP that shows that the website's traffic is encrypted by SSL. Users also tend to trust such websites way more. Though some of them may not notice the difference between an "http://" and an "https://" addresses, the majority of browsers started tagging HTTP websites as "not secure" in very noticeable ways. It's done to motivate more and more website owners to switch to HTTPS for better security.
4. SEO benefits. SSL is part of Google's search ranking algorithm, which is why it's also great for SEO. Moreover, if there are two websites that have several content and only one of them has SSL, the one that is encrypted will have better chances regarding SEO. It's especially important for SMM panels since admins always look for ways to stay ahead of the competition.
How is it possible to get SSL certificates for SMM panels?
Now that we established that all websites where users enter their personal information should have "https://" only, it's clear that SMM panels are no exception to that rule.
As an owner of an SMM panel that has to collect customer data, you need to make sure you have an SSL certificate to prove that your panel can be trusted. Not only it can attract more customers because people generally look for the safest SMM panels they can find, but also help make sure that hackers don't get access to your customers' personal data.
One of the best things about owning an SMM panel on our platform is that you don't have to worry about purchasing an SSL certificate separately at all, we already offer it for all our clients. And, more importantly, we offer it completely for free — no additional fees or anything like that since it's already included in all our panel maintenance plans. This is why you can rest assured that all SMM panels you purchase on our platform are super secure and safe to visit for your customers.