What does the additional “s” in the address bar mean?
Many users have no idea how web addresses differ from additional “s” for HTTP. This protocol means that the site uses the SSL standard or Secure Sockets Layer. This ensures the confidentiality and integrity of data transfer and server authentication, and sometimes the client. Simply put, an HTTPS connection protects data from hacker attacks. There are many advantages to using this solution when using SSL. Why use HTTPS on a website?
Using SSL is one of the factors rated by search engines.
The Google algorithms when ranking pages in the search results take into account about 200 factors. One of them is whether the site uses SSL certificate or not. In the event that two stores or websites that transmit sensitive data are equally assessed, the one that uses the HTTPS protocol will be higher.
Sites that use an SSL certificate are loaded at a slower rate than when they are loaded via HTTP, but this can be overcome by setting the server to use HTTP / 2 so that the page loads even faster than its version without a certificate.
Google has repeatedly stressed the importance of security and user convenience, and websites that encrypt data using this protocol provide them with much more security than those using the HTTP protocol.
Secures user data
Nowadays, we are increasingly hearing about hacker attacks – both for individual users and for large institutions. Crashes in accounts on different websites, theft of personal data, credit card numbers or other confidential information are becoming more frequent, since many websites do not care about the security of data transmission and storage.
Using the HTTPS protocol to send data from the form, such as: login, password, personal data, account numbers or payment cards, as well as its use in online payment systems, effectively prevents hackers from transferring information, for example, during an average attack and under the user .
For this reason, websites that provide confidential data or make payments must have an SSL certificate installed on it. Users see a green lock on the address of an unknown website, they give it much more confidence than if the site uses the HTTP protocol and transmits data in a way that can be easily intercepted by hackers.
AMP supported
AMP means Accelerated Mobile Pages, which speeds up page loading on mobile devices. Sites that use this technology download smartphones and tablets almost immediately. AMP services are marked with a special lightning bolt in Google search results.
Google is currently seeking to force websites to use AMP to speed up downloads. For this reason, in the coming months, this technology may become one of the important factors determining the position in mobile search results. Therefore, if a significant proportion of users of the website are smartphones and tablets, the implementation of this solution can help significantly improve the situation and increase traffic from Google search.
Therefore it is necessary to go ahead and develop the site in accordance with the trend, followed by Google. It may turn out that in a few months, thanks to the preparation of the AMP version and the use of SSL, our site will reach the best positions in the search results, leaving the competition far behind.
Google mobile index
Google uses a mobile index to evaluate a site and determine its position in a search engine for mobile devices. This means that the position depends on the factors present on the mobile version of the page, and not on the normal one.
Picture Credit: skylarvision