Over the course of a year, Google has announced some drastic changes in an effort to cultivate a culture of safety and security online. Google’s efforts revolved around flagging HTTP websites in an effort to make them obsolete. Their latest plan involves removing the “Secure” indicator for protected websites and flag all HTTP websites as “Not Secure,” regardless if they’re static or not. “Users should expect that the web is safe by default, and they’ll be warned when there’s an issue,” Google wrote on a blog post.
Some website owners might find this unfair, especially those who own static websites or websites without any login pages or payment options. They might think no one’s going to hack their websites because they don’t store sensitive data. “We don’t need to bother ourselves with SSL!” While there’s some truth in those sentiments, there are still some strong arguments to switch static websites to HTTPS. So to clear the issue, here are some compelling reasons why your static website still needs an SSL Certificate.
Protection for Content and Users
While your static website doesn’t have any credentials or user data to protect, you still have to protect your content from being defaced or hacked. You also have to worry about the privacy of your users as hackers can still target anyone who visits your unprotected website. Upgrading your static website to HTTPS will encrypt the connection between your website and your visitor’s browser. Having SSL also assures you that your source code is intact and free from defamation by troublesome hackers.
Site Traffic Improvement and Quality
If you’re looking to improve your site traffic, an SSL Certificate can certainly help. Google started favoring HTTPS websites in web searches back in 2014, so your static website already missed out. Upgrading to HTTPS can also improve your Google Analytics data as it allows you to add inbound links from HTTPS websites. Not only that, protected websites get lower bounce rates since users are more likely to keep browsing on a “Secure” website and click away from a “Not Secure” website.
Public Trust and Website Reputation
The upcoming change Google wants to implement will certainly affect your website’s reputation. If you own a legal advice blog or an educational website, a “Not Secure” indicator on your address bar won’t be a good look for your brand. A study conducted by GlobalSign revealed that 9 out of 10 users will instinctively trust a website with security indicators in place, the same indicators your website will receive when you get an SSL Certificate. So that’s something to think about.
Popularity and Influence of Google
As of 2016, Google Chrome boasts over 2 billion active browsers installed on computers and smartphones all over the world. Whether you agree with their initiative or not, it’s no surprise that your static website will more likely be viewed using the popular web browser. And the changes won’t necessarily benefit the tech giant alone. By choosing to not cooperate with Google’s initiative, you’ll miss all these great upsides that will benefit the majority of internet users and even the brand you want to represent.
Is your static website in need of an SSL upgrade? Don’t fear the change, embrace it! Learn more about SSL Certificates by visiting our official website. You can also check out our free guide to help you get started on learning what SSL can do for your online security.
