At catalyst2 we sell a range of SSLs, however from the 1st September, we will only be selling 1-year SSLs. To learn more about SSLs and the new changes to the certificates, continue reading.

What are SSLs?

SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer. It is an internet security protocol which is encryption-based. SSL certificates are a method of securing information through encryption for internet communications and transactions. It creates an encrypted channel between your website and client web browsers.

What do SSLs do?

SSL certificates secure data which is sent between website users and servers, to prevent any information being intercepted and stolen. Every website operator should use an SSL. Firstly, they prevent customer data from being stolen, which protects the users of your website. But there are also many other benefits to using an SSL certificate. These certificates can improve how your website performs in search engine results. Search engines such as Google treat SSL certificates as a sign of a high-quality website and therefore places these websites at the top of the search. Ranking at the top of search engines is an ongoing struggle for websites, and therefore any opportunity to even slightly increase this ranking should be taken. Without an SSL certificate, it is likely that your website will fall further behind your competitors in the future.

Another benefit of using an SSL certificate is the user trust that it creates. Web browsers show when a website is secure through a padlock symbol in the address bar. Google Chrome goes as far as to highlight when a website isn’t secure. For users of your website, the text ‘not secure’ is a red flag, and may encourage them to leave your website. Your conversion rate will be reduced over time if you do not have an SSL certificate in place.

Lifespan of SSLs

Recently, the Certificate Authority industry has accepted a new default lifespan for certificates, to only 398 days. This comes after a decision made by tech company Apple to implement this rule, and other companies have followed suit. From 1st September 2020, devices and browsers from Apple, Mozilla and Google will only allow certificates for this period of time and show error messages for those that have a greater lifespan than this.

Lifespans of SSL certificates started at 8 years. However, since then, this lifespan has been reducing. In March 2018, lifespans were reduced from three years to two. Just over a year later, browsers have pushed the Certificate Authority to reduce the lifespan yet again, now just to one year. The main reason why browsers want shorter lifespans for SSL certificates is that it means that bad certificates get cycled out faster. In the past, bad certificates that have been abused for malware have taken years to be removed. By reducing the lifespan, these certificates will become invalid faster.

What catalyst2 are offering

catalyst2 are well aware of these new changes to SSL certificates, and that is why we have updated our products accordingly. We sell a range of SSL certificates, but all of our certificate lifespans are now a maximum of one year, in keeping with the new rules. We offer a Business Certificate, a Business Wildcard Certificate, an Extended Validation Business Certificate, and a Let’s Encrypt Certificate.

To discuss your options and find out which SSL certificate is right for you, get in touch with our friendly team today. They have years of experience in helping website owners find the right certificate to protect their users.