Big changes are happening with website security. Starting in October 2017, every unsecured website out there with a contact form will be notifying users with a “Not secure” warning in Google’s popular Chrome browser.
You want your website to start with HTTPS, which indicates website security. Website security can be achieved through an SSL certificate.
Google has been pushing website owners to make their websites more secure and convert to “HTTPS” since 2014. Recently, Google has sent out an email reminding website owners of just that. Currently, Chrome only shows a gray indicator on text fields of unsecured web pages. Google feels this doesn’t adequately show the lack of security an unsecured site offers. Google has already implemented this warning in credit card and password fields for unsecured websites in January 2017.
It is unclear if other browsers, such as Mozilla Firefox or Safari, will implement the same changes, but because Chrome is so large and has billions of users, it is important to take this update seriously. Chrome currently owns 64% of the market share and about 40% of all browsers are on the latest version of Chrome (W3 Counter).
WHY?
Google believes any information typed into text fields should be done across a secure network and information over an HTTP website can be easily compromised. According to Emily Schechter, a Chrome Security Team Member, passwords and credit cards are not the only types of data that should be private; any type of data that users type into websites should not be accessible to others in the network. Google hopes the new “Not secure” warning will help deter people from typing into text fields on HTTP sites. Also, it is believed that “Incognito mode” helps secure information, but over an HTTP site, it creates the same amount of risk. Therefore, the warning will occur in “Incognito mode” as well.
WHAT TO DO IF YOUR SITE IS HTTP
Regardless if you have a form on your website or not, we recommend acquiring the necessary SSL/TSL certificates and make your website HTTPS on your server. Not having a HTTPS website, will make users hesitate to type anything on your site, allowing you to lose trust and creditability. To acquire the necessary SSL/TSL certificates to make your site secure, contact us. We can make sure your website becomes HTTPS and you won’t have to worry about your SEO rankings or creditability.
IMPORTANT TO NOTE
If you have changed your website over to HTTPS, you need to update your Google Search Console. Unfortunately, Google Search Console will not automatically update the new domain. If you don’t update, data will not be tracked. To update, you need to re-add your website as a property in the Search Console platform with the proper HTTPS website domain.
Unfamiliar with Search Console? Read more about the free Goole tool here.
About Ocreative
Ocreative was established in 2003 as one of the early pioneers of digital advertising and design in the Midwest. The company is made up of bright, honest digital innovators and creative gurus, carving out a niche for themselves and their trusting clients. Along the way, Ocreative has grown to become more recognized as an award-winning, full-service, integrated marketing agency. Ocreative gets big results for its clients, and that puts big smiles on everyone’s faces. Even though the agency’s office is in the Midwest, its clients are located throughout the United States. Ocreative’s portfolio includes expert marketing and strategy, advertising and design, websites and digital marketing, video, and multimedia.
