An SSL certificate you purchased has expired. Your website now says “Not Secure.” You are worried that visitors will avoid it and leave. Not to mention the SEO implications that come into play.
It is easy to forget to renew SSL certificates. After all, an SSL certificate renewal doesn’t precisely leave alarm bells ringing in anyone’s head! Now you have lost potential clients whom you need to get back from Google’s search results.
Fret not. The information in this article can help you create a secure website right away. Follow our blog for simple instructions on adding an SSL certificate or renewing it to avoid SEO implications.
What Does a “Not Secure” Website Mean?
The “Not Secure” warning in the address bar is part of a new focus by browsers on security.
It all began with Google Chrome when, in September 2015, they announced the marking of non-HTTPS sites as “Not Secure.”
Since January 2017, this warning has been applied to Firefox as well. On the other hand, Microsoft has not made an official announcement about its stance on this action by Google.
However, their technical documentation indicates that the same “Not Secure” warning will apply to Internet Explorer and Edge in the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update.
A “Not Secure” label on your website can scare your existing and potential customers away.
Therefore, it is crucial for Search Engine Optimizers and Website owners to understand why this label exists and how it might affect your search engine rankings.
HTTPS Websites Are Secure
HTTPS is intended to be a secure version of HTTP, the protocol your browser uses to request pages from websites. But there is a flaw in the way that browsers work.
The flaw has to do with the deadline that browsers give themselves when trying to load a web page over HTTPS or any other kind of secure connection.
When you see the lock icon in your address bar, it means your browser is using 128-bit encryption to communicate with the server.
That encryption protects everything you send to and receive from the website, including your username and password. The reason browsers give themselves such a short deadline is because they sometimes have trouble establishing secure connections. The problem is not with HTTPS; it’s with TLS, which encrypts your communications with the server.
TLS is implemented on top of TCP/IP, defining how computers send messages across the Internet.
Browsers want to be able to tell when their TCP/IP connections are broken—when their TCP packets are getting lost or delayed on their way from one computer to another—so they give themselves two minutes before they declare a connection broken and try again.
“Not Secure” Doesn’t Mean Your Computer Is Infected
When you see ‘’Not Secure’’ on a website address bar, it doesn’t mean your computer is infected. Despite the warning message in your browser’s address bar, you don’t need to throw away your computer.
It simply means that the website you’re visiting is not using HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure).
HTTPS helps ensure that the data sent between your computer and the server is secure and cannot intercept third parties.
The fact that you see this warning message doesn’t necessarily mean that your connection to the site is insecure.
The easiest way to ensure you’re secure is to see if you can access the site without entering sensitive information, such as credit card information or passwords. If that is the case, then there’s no reason to worry.
Websites Without HTTPS Label Rank Lower In Search Results
The reason: Google wants to give the best results to their users. They want to provide the most relevant content in search results, thus ensuring that the content is safe.
Search engines can detect HTTPS sites and know when they’re secure because they use secure encryption technology. As a result, the websites that utilize this technology are better protected from malware attacks.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a phenomenon that many people find mysterious. However, SEO is something that anyone can understand if they take the time to learn about it.
By implementing HTTPS to your site, you will be able to rank higher on search engines like Google and Bing while protecting your website from potential threats.
Websites Without HTTPS Label Experience Lower Conversions
Improving your conversion rate should be a priority if you’re selling online. But you can’t experience higher conversions if your website doesn’t sport the HTTPS label.
A not secure warning on your website is bound to put off many potential and existing customers. In fact, most users will be wary of doing business with websites they find or consider to be insecure and won’t risk making transactions.
Therefore, it is essential to have the HTTPS label attached to your website for a better conversion rate and bottom line.
Avoid Costly Security Cleanups
It is always pricier to restore a website or remove viruses later than to take the proper security measures from the onset.
Therefore, adding site security upon the launch of your website can play an integral part in saving you high-security cleanup costs down the line due to hackers or powerful viruses.
My Website is Not Secure, How Can I Fix It?
One of the most annoying warning messages a website owner can encounter is the “Not Secure” warning displayed on the address bar, which means that the connection between your web server and the visitor’s browser isn’t encrypted.
Here’s the step-by-step guide on how to do it by yourself without getting your SEO in tangles:
1. Install Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Certificate
A non-profit project called Let’s Encrypt grants SSL certificates for free.
This certificate authority aims to simplify getting a free SSL certificate for website owners. As more and more websites begin to use SSL, the Internet as a whole becomes a safer place.
It is difficult for a beginner to install the free SSL certificate provided by Let’s Encrypt, as it requires coding and server system knowledge. If you want to upgrade the SSL certificate yourself, check the Process below.
Step by Step Process on How to Upgrade the SSL Certificate by Yourself:
Click On Get Started
Read And Implement The Let’s Encrypt Instruction To Access Your CPanel To Renew/Buy SSL
Press ‘’Login To the CPanel’’ Of Your Web Hosting
Click On SSL/TLS Wizard
Then Click On Create Advanced (No Wildcard Support)
Type Your Website And Purchase A Certificate
Thankfully, you can hire TechNerds’ developers who can add these free SSL certificates for you.
Opting for one of our developers saves you from the hassle of installing SSL certificates on your own.
You can activate your free SSL certificate through your hosting dedicated server deals dashboard if you currently use one of these providers.
Go to the cPanel dashboard of your hosting account and select the “Security” section.
From here, you can switch to the security tab and turn on a free SSL certificate for your website.
If you are unable to locate the free SSL option, ask your hosting provider to enable it for you.
2. Ensure That Internal And External Links Use HTTPS
The same applies to internal and external links on your site, as you’ll want to ensure that both continue to function properly after you change them all to HTTPS.
Although it might sound time-consuming, it’s crucial to ensure your website is protected by HTTPS rather than leaving it vulnerable.
3. Verify Your Website In Google Search Console
You should verify both the HTTP and HTTPS versions of your website in Google Search Console after installing your SSL certificate and ensuring that your site links use HTTPS.
You will also need to ensure your preferred domain is set to HTTPS as part of this process. By doing so, the secure version of your website will be displayed to site visitors.
4. Ensure that HTTP URLs Are Redirected
If you mention your website on any third-party sites that you manage, you will need to ensure that any mentions of HTTP are changed over to HTTPS.
If you run your own website, you will need to create 301 redirects to ensure your HTTP URLs refer to the HTTPS version.
5. Update XML Sitemap
The next step is to update your XML sitemap to reference HTTPS versions of your site pages. A sitemap serves as a road map for users and search engines alike to help them navigate your website easily.
You should submit your updated sitemap to Google Search Console so that Google can re-crawl and index your website with the new links.
How Long Does It Take for HTTPS To Be Enabled On A Website?
Several commercial certificate authorities offer SSL/TLS certificates in various formats, including Extended Validation Certificates.
In April 2016, Let’s Encrypt launched a free service that automates the delivery of SSL/TLS certificates to websites.
According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Let’s Encrypt will enable users to switch from HTTP to HTTPS using a single command or button. The majority of web hosts and cloud providers now utilize Let’s Encrypt to provide their customers with free certificates.
Need Help Securing Your Website?
Website owners need to take a step back, accept responsibility, and take steps to keep up with the policies of browsers.
HTTPS is now a standard that everyone should follow to keep their information safe and secure.
Everything is connected to the Internet. It’s not just limited to our computers and phones, but also smart cars, refrigerators, TV sets, VPS servers, and more. We need to be able to trust these appliances as well.
Business owners unaware of their site being insecure are more prone to losing business than those who do.
Thankfully, we have expert developers at TechNerds who can help protect your business’ website. Contact us and get your website secured today.