SSL Certificates & VeriSign

[rayenergy]

Hi, everyone : )

I know that hosting companies offer SSL certificates (for example, when you host your Wordpress blog on Hostgator, the Baby plan offers a 'shared' SSL certificate, and the Business plan offers a Dedicated SSL certificate) ~

What is the significance of the VeriSign SSL certificate? I've seen the emblem on e-commerce sites, and I have to admit that I like seeing it, even though I'm not all that sure that it 'ensures' anything out of the ordinary.

Soo...If one hosts a Wordpress site on Hostgator, and they receive a shared SSL certificate - how does VeriSign enter into the equation? And...is VeriSign something ultimately desired, or...does it really matter?

Thanks in advance for any thoughts : )

[robert adams]

the only thing that needs to be secured with a SSL certificate is your order form when you are taking people's credit card/private info.

then, your order form page will have the https instead of just http.

other than that, there is no real reason to worry about SSL on your site.

[ChristineCobb]

My understanding is that a shared SSL certificate will make the address of a page look something like https://yourdomainname.com.yourhostingcompany..... whereas the private SSL removes the hosting company from the address. A private SSL requires a dedicated IP so your account would need to upgrade to that.

Verisign is a well known company that issues the certificates and you pay extra for the goodwill that their name implies. You can get a private SSL for as little as $10 per year if you know how to install it yourself. Hostgator sells one and installs it for $50 which also comes with an image to let visitors know that their information is secure. I guess the question is whether having Verisign would result in more sales. Maybe others here have seen data on this.

[robert adams]

sometimes you can simply access your site using the https with a shared certificate. just depends on the host and how they have it setup.

robert