What is it?
SSL/TLS Secure Certificates provide security for your website by encrypting communications between the server and the person visiting the website. SSL has been deprecated and replaced by TLS technology wise, but many people still use SSL interchangeably with TLS since it was the term used for a couple decades roughly.
In order to use TLS (SSL), you need to have an TLS / SSL Certificate (also known as a Secure Certificate) installed on your server. Also your browser must support it, which these browsers do: Firefox, Brave, Opera, Safari, Android default browser, Samsung internet browser, Microsoft Edge, and Google Chrome.
We are now able to install TLS/SSL's on the shared IP address, but the visitor's browser must support it. Nearly all modern browsers do as of approximately 2013.
What is it used for?
There are two main reasons why you would need an TLS (SSL) Certificate. The first and most common reason is because you want to accept credit card payments on your website. The second reason is that you may have confidential information that you want to keep secure while it is being accessed via the web. TLS/SSL Certificates also help to protect your passwords from being intercepted, when typed into a secure login page.
Do I need one?
If you are accepting credit card payments online via a merchant account, the credit card associations and networks require that you use TLS/SSL whenever you transmit credit card information, such as the card number, cardholder's name, expiration date, CVV code, etc. (such as when a customer enters their credit card on your shopping cart order form or payment page). This is an important part of making your website PCI compliant (a set of rules that must be followed in order to accept credit card payments).
In addition to being PCI compliant (which is required by Visa, MasterCard, Discover Network, American Express, Diners Club International, JCB and your payment processing company), your customers also look to see if your order form or shopping cart is secure before entering their credit card information. You can easily lose sales if your customers see that your site is not secure.
If customers are not entering credit card information directly on your website, but rather entering it directly on a payment processing company's website or webpage, such as NiftyPay, iTransact, Revere Payments, Authorize.net, PayPal, Google Checkout or Amazon Payments, then you do not need an TLS/SSL Certificate, since you are not transmitting nor storing credit card information.
NOTE: However, it is advised if you are requiring visitors to fill out any online form, that you should at least use the freely provided AutoSSL secure certificate in the links to your pages or forms. Those links & URLs will start with https:// instead of http:// . You don't have to do anything to order or setup or renew the free TLS (SSL) secure certificate for your domain name (website) as we automatically do that for you.
Order / More Info:
To order or see more information, check out https://ihostportal.com/ihost/index.php?rp=/store/ssl-certificates/
