What is a SSL certificate, and do I need one?

An SSL (secure sockets layer) certificate is a digital certificate that both *authenticates the identity of a website, and *encrypts sensitive information so that any passwords, addresses or credit card numbers cannot be intercepted or read by anyone other than the intended recipient. Once a SSL certificate is installed you’ll notice your domain name protocol (website URL prefix) will change from Http: to Https. See URL example below of a website with a SSL certificate installed.

What are the benefits to have a SSL certificated installed?

A SSL certificate is by no means required for your website, but there are a several benefits to having one.

• The data contained in your website, like passwords, addresses or credit card numbers will be encrypted.
• SSL certificates tell your website visitors that the data within your website is encrypted.
• Having a SSL certificate installed will increase your search results ranking with Google
  Please Note: Your Learning Management System is still secure without having a SSL certificate installed. 

How do I install a SSL Certificate?

Contact your web hosting provider for further details. 

VERY IMPORTANT - Installing a SSL Certificate could affect the lesson content in your Learning Management System

Sometimes lesson files contain content that’s linked outside the lesson file itself, like a video or document. For example, if you have a video that is being pulled from Http://www.videohosting.com/example video.mp4 and the URL of your domain starts with Https (because of the installed SSL certificate), that video might not play or the viewers of your lesson could receive a security warning while attempting to play the video.

It’s very important to keep in mind when installing a SSL certificate to your LMS, how it will affect your lesson content. We suggest looking at your content before installing a SSL certificate to see how your content would be affected.

Definitions

Authenticate - The process of identifying an individual, usually based on a username and password. In security systems, authentication is distinct from authorization , which is the process of giving individuals access to system objects based on their identity.

Encrypt - The translation of data into a secret code. Encryption is the most effective way to achieve data security. To read an encrypted file, you must have access to a secret key or password that enables you to decrypt it. Unencrypted data is called plain text ; encrypted data is referred to as cipher text.