W3U Customer Support

Secure Socket Layer (SSL) - Securing Data Transfer

What is SSL?
How do I set up SSL for my web site?
How secure is secure?
Why do I get a Security Alert message from my web browser?
How do I call web pages using SSL?

What is SSL?

SSL or Secure Socket Layer is a means of encrypting the data as it's sent between our web server and the computer of the party contacting the server.

How do I set up SSL for my web site?

• GoTo your site admin control panel (http://www.yourdomainname/siteadmin/)

• GoTo SSL Settings (in main menu)

• Fill out the Certificate Subject Information (see below)

• From the drop down menu at the bottom of page select Generate Self-Signed Certificate and click 'Save Changes'

• At this point, you have 2 choices:
  i.) you can use the Self Signed Certificate that you just created for your security needs.  There is no charge for this service.
  
  ii.) you can go to your preferred Security Certificate company e.g. Thawte.com or Verisign.com
  and order your own 128 bit sercurity certificate. You will need the Certificate Request code that was generated when you created your Self-Signed Certificate. It's located in the upper SSL Settings window.
  The cost for your own cert is about $200 for the first year, and $150 every year thereafter.
  When you receive your new security certificate, paste it over the self-signed cert, select Use Manually Entered Certificate from the drop down menu and 'Save Changes'. Once you have saved these changes you will need to notify use to have the web service restarted on this machine. It is a necessary step as it unloads the current configuration and loads the new one, which will include your certificate files.

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How secure is secure?

Our servers use security certificates with 128 bit encryption.

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Why do I get a Security Alert message from my web browser when trying to access my web pages using https?

The security alerts are generated because the self-signed certificates Certifiying Authority is www.yourdomainname, not a trusted authority (i.e. your web browser is not preprogrammed to recognize self-signed certs).  Trusted Certificates from authorities like Thawte and Verisign are pre-programmed into web browsers like Internet Explorer and Netscape. Your self-signed cert must be manually added to that list.  Your 128 bit self-signed cert provides the same encryption as a 128 bit cert from Thawte or Verisign.

How do I call web pages using SSL?

Just substitute https:// for http://

What is valid Certificate Subject Information?

For example:. for a company 'Widgets for the Web' located in San Diego, CA
Country:  US
State:  California
Locality:  San Diego
Organization:  Widgets for the Web
Organizational Unit:  e.g. Security

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