eCatholic websites gain an extra layer of security

Nov 22, 2016 by

Josh Simmons

Getting an SSL certificate can be expensive and complicated. Not any more! All eCatholic websites now have their own SSL certificate. No extra cost for you. No action necessary.

What is SSL?

Have you ever gone to a website and noticed https or a padlock symbol in your browser? This is SSL in action.

Here's your technical definition of SSL:

SSL (Secure Sockets Layer): A security protocol that secures data transferred between two machines using encryption.

Still confused? Check out this "SSL certificate explained" video. Ultimately, it's most important for you to understand how this SSL update improves your website.

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Benefit 1: Extra security and data encryption

When people now visit your eCatholic website, their browser (i.e., Chrome, Firefox, etc.) communicates with your website (on eCatholic’s servers) using a secure connection (SSL). This means that any browsing activity or data transfer is now secured with encryption.

Encryption scrambles data into an unreadable format. It happens as data transfers from someone’s computer to your website’s server. For example, data becomes encrypted to look like gibberish (e.g., åƒ∂†0˚∑πƒ ˜ ¬ø∆´ßå) as it moves over the internet to a web server.

While encryption is mandatory for processing online payments (see benefit 3), it's best that all browsing and data transfer occur using a secure connection.

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Benefit 2: Faster load times

Some mistakenly claim that SSL = slower websites. They say the extra layer of security slows load times.

This may have been the case years ago, but new technology flips this myth on its head. In fact, our development team is using the latest HTTP/2 technology. This new protocol gives your website better performance and faster load times.

The details can get complicated. Just know that SSL for your website = better performance.

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Benefit 3: Transactions are secure – directly at your domain

As you may know, you can accept donations and payments directly on your website using eCatholic Payments.

Previously, eCatholic Payments transactions took place via a secure, SSL-protected connection. However, transactions were happening at a secure secondary URL, not your actual domain.

No longer. This SSL upgrade throws secondary URLs out the window. All transactions processed on your website will take place (securely) at your domain.

How did this happen?

What led to this upgrade? Why now? Here’s the answer.

Not long ago, securing a website with an SSL certificate could cost an organization well over $100 per year. For many ministries, that price tag made it difficult to keep websites both secure and affordable.

Thankfully, advances in technology have changed that. New SSL initiatives emerged that made it possible to provide trusted certificates at little to no cost. Our team recognized an opportunity to bring these benefits to the Church and began building the systems to make it happen.

Today, when you host your site with eCatholic, we automatically provide SSL certificates for you at no extra cost. This ensures your site is secure and trustworthy, without adding to your budget.

We planned. We studied. We built. And long story short, today you have SSL for FREE.