Isp : Vote "No Confidence" In SSL

issuer will place a hold on the debt, once you reach the
point of disputing a debit card transaction, the money is
already gone.

My second concern was the high emphasis on the use of SSL,
more commonly known as “the little lock in your web
browser”. The Federal Trade Commission lists it first in
their “Shop Online Safely” bulletin which, in my opinion,
overemphasizes its weight.

Once upon a time, SSL certificates were expensive and there
was a relevant vetting process involved in having one
issued. This has created a false belief that an SSL
certificates contribute to a website’s legitimacy. In
reality, a SSL certificate can be had for as little as five
dollars by anybody who has a telephone number. An expensive
Thawte or a Verisign issued certificate provides no more or
less security than their cheaper counterparts. In fact, they
don’t provide any more security than a “bad” certificate
either. An expired or un-trusted certificate is equally
effective at encrypting data as a premium cert. Many
security and IT professionals work with these “bad”
certificates everyday with full confidence that they are
serving the purpose they need them to.

SSL Encrypts Online Web Communications

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For the most part, SSL serves one function only; it secures
the communication between your web browser and the vendor’s
web server at the time your data is transmitted. In reality,
even this isn’t necessarily true. I’ve recently become aware
that some SSL implementations have the option to set the
encryption cipher as “plain text”, meaning that in spite of
the presence of the lock, no encryption actually takes
place.

Conclusion

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In a nutshell, technology is not a substitute for due
diligence. The presence of SSL should never be a weighing
factor in deciding to purchase from a vendor, although the
lack of it should be an immediate red flag to take your
business elsewhere.

About the Author

About The Author

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Erich Heintz currently specializes in providing network and
security solutions for small to medium businesses that
frequently have to resolve the conflict of need versus
budget. If you would like to know more about
computer security please visit us at
http://www.defendingthenet.com.
Written By: Erich Heintz