If you're a webmaster, you may already know that you can rely on secure socket layers, or SSL, to protect sensitive information as it travels from a visitor's computer to your own servers. SSL protects connections to each page of your website prefaced with an "https" rather than "http." Because SSL pages load relatively slowly, you may prefer to add SSL selectively so that it only protects pages that receive sensitive information.
1. Obtain the appropriate SSL certificate from an SSL vendor. Check with the company that hosts your website to see if it provides SSL certificates -- they may offer assistance with installation or a discounted price.
2. Create a copy of your certificate when it arrives, and store it in a safe place on your computer so that you can retrieve it easily for future use.
3. Install the SSL certificate on your server by following the directions sent by the SSL vendor via email or those given on their website. Consult the documentation for your Web server or your Internet programming framework if you are working with a programmer and want to add SSL by writing computer code.
4. Locate all pages on your website that ask a visitor to enter sensitive information.
5. Change the links to each page so that they begin with "https" rather than "http" so that a link that formerly read as "<a href="http://www.yoursite.com/store">My Website Shop</a>" now reads <a href="https://www.yoursite.com/store">My Website Store</a>".
6. Visit each sensitive Web page using several different Internet browsers. Verify that each page's Internet address now begins "https" and that a lock icon appears in the browser address bar during your visit.
- SSL Certificate
- SSL security sometimes fails, so you may opt to work with a programmer to create additional safety measures.
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