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VeriSign Secured Seal
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What does a VeriSign SSL Digital Certificate do? |
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Once installed, a VeriSign SSL Certificate allows a Web site to securely identify itself to customers
and also to encrypt any information sent to or from the Web site.
Authentication
The SSL Certificate authenticates the Web site - assuring you that the
people behind the site are who they say they are. The certificate cannot be forged, and reveals:
- the identity of the organisation which has purchased the certificate
- where they are located
- whether they are a properly registered business
- how recently their credentials were checked
- the address of the Web site that the certificate must be used for.
Authentication protects you against the 'Site Spoofing' and 'Phishing' scams which which you will have
seen discussed in the media. The authentication information provided by an SSL Certificate cannot
be forged or spoofed.
Encryption
Installing an SSL Certificate on a Web site enables encryption for all transactions to and from that Web site.
What this means is that any information sent by your Web browser, or by the Web site, will first be converted
into 'cyphertext' - a coded version which can only be read by your personal Web browser or the SSL Web site that
you're connected to. If any third party were to intercept your message as it crossed the Internet, they would
be unable to read the cyphertext - only your Web browser and the Web server concerned have the digital 'keys'
necessary to decode the message.
If there is an attempt to forge a VeriSign Digital Certificate, or if it is used on a Web site other than
the one it was registered for (e.g. in an attempt to "spoof" a Web site), or if is being used outside of the
period that it has been registered for, your Web browser will automatically alert you that the Web site is NOT to
be trusted and you should not interact with the site any further.
A business or organisation which has invested in a VeriSign SSL Certificate
takes your online privacy and security seriously.
To quickly and easily reassure yourself whether an online store is one that you can trust, watch for the
VeriSign VeriSign Secured Seal.
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