What is SSL?

Secure sockets layer is a computer networking protocol that supervises server identification and authentication. It also manages client authentication and encrypted communication between servers and clients.

How does it work?

SSL utilizes a combination of protective measures to securely encrypt transferred information. It uses public-key and symmetric-key encryption to secure a connection between the two machines that are interacting over the Internet. These devices typically include a server and a user's computer. These two types of encryption take normal information and place it into unique codes that are unknown to an outside user.

How does SSL impact ecommerce businesses?

SSL is a standard security technology for protecting encrypted communications between a server and the recipient of its stored information. SSL security typically establishes a secure link between a Web server, or an ecommerce website in this case, and the browser.

The same type of technology exists for email between mail servers and a mail client. Most Internet browsers support SSL. Ecommerce business owners must comply with SSL security standards because it

is the protocol that protects the transfer of important customer information, such as credit card numbers, social security numbers and login credentials. A website domain that begins with "https:" is compliant, whereas "http:" is not.

Why is it important?

Without this layer of protection, ecommerce store owners don't have extra security when it comes to accessing and storing sensitive information. With SSL security protocol, hackers have difficulty obtaining and reusing information illegally. Information transferred between a server and a browser without SSL protection is not encrypted, meaning it is visible in plain sight or not coded. Data that isn't coded is much more vulnerable to theft than encrypted information.