HTTPS & SSL Certificates: Why Security is a Ranking Fac

What is the ‘S’ in HTTPS? A Primer on SSL/TLS Encryption

I remember the early days of the internet, when buying anything online felt like a leap of faith. You’d type in your credit card number and just hope for the best. It was the digital equivalent of sending your details on a postcard for anyone along the delivery route to read. The ‘S’ in HTTPS is what turned that postcard into a sealed, tamper-proof envelope.

That little ‘S’ simply stands for Secure. This security is provided by an encryption protocol. You’ll often hear the term SSL, which stands for Secure Sockets Layer. Technically, though, we’re now using its more modern and capable successor: TLS, or Transport Layer Security. Most professionals still use the term “SSL” colloquially, but it’s the TLS protocol that’s actually doing the heavy lifting on modern websites.

So, what happens behind the scenes? When your browser visits a secure site, a rapid negotiation called a “TLS handshake” occurs. It goes something like this:

• Your browser says hello to the server.
• The server presents its SSL/TLS certificate, which is like a digital passport verifying its identity.
• Once verified, they securely exchange keys and establish an encrypted connection.

From that point on, all data—from the password you enter on a banking site to the shipping address you provide on an e-commerce store—is scrambled. An eavesdropper would see only gibberish, not your private information. This encrypted link ensures the conversation between your browser and the server remains confidential and unaltered.

Google’s Seal of Approval: How Security Became a Confirmed Ranking Signal

I remember a client meeting around 2013. We were discussing a new website, and I brought up installing an SSL certificate. “Why bother?” the owner asked. “We don’t sell anything online.” It was a common sentiment back then; security felt like an optional extra for e-commerce stores. Speaking of which, that entire mindset was about to be turned on its head.

In August 2014, Google made it official. They announced that they were starting to use HTTPS as a ranking signal. At first, it was a very lightweight signal, affecting fewer than 1% of global queries. They described it as more of a tie-breaker than a major factor. Many site owners ignored it. But this was just the first step in a much larger push for a secure web. The gentle nudge became a firm shove.

The real change came when browsers, particularly Google’s own Chrome, started actively flagging non-HTTPS sites. First, it was a subtle grey “Not Secure” warning on pages with password or credit card fields. Then, it expanded to all pages served over HTTP. Suddenly, my old client’s argument fell apart. His “contact us” form, which collected names and emails, was now being flagged. Visitors saw that warning and hesitated, and his lead generation numbers took a noticeable dip. Google wasn’t just rewarding security; it was now penalizing the lack of it through user experience, making a secure connection an absolute must-have.

Beyond the Rankings: The User Trust Factor of the Green Padlock

My mother called me last week in a minor panic. She’d found the perfect gardening tool set online but was afraid to check out. “It’s asking for my Visa,” she whispered, “but how do I know the page is real?” I walked her through looking for the little lock icon next to the website address, a conversation I feel like I’ve had a hundred times with friends and family.

Speaking of which, that padlock is far more than a technicality for a search engine to crawl; it’s a deeply ingrained symbol of trust for human beings. For over a decade, we’ve been conditioned to associate that icon with safety. It’s the digital equivalent of seeing a clean storefront and a working security camera. The absence of it, or worse, a browser’s explicit “Not Secure” warning, is an immediate red flag.

Consider this scenario: someone searches for “handmade leather wallets,” clicks on your site, and is immediately greeted by a warning that their connection isn’t private. They don’t know what an SSL certificate is, but they know a warning sign when they see one. They’ll likely hit the back button and choose your competitor’s link instead. This behavior, known as a “bounce,” tells Google that your result wasn’t a good answer to the user’s query. Accumulate enough of these negative user signals, and your rankings will inevitably decline.

While most browsers have phased out the once-prominent green bar for a more subtle gray lock, the psychological impact remains. You’re not just securing data; you’re reassuring a person on the other end of the screen that it’s safe to do business with you.

Making the Switch: A Practical Guide to Implementing HTTPS on Your Site

I once had a client who proudly announced they’d “gone secure.” They had clicked the ‘Activate SSL’ button in their hosting panel and called it a day. A week later, they called me in a panic. Their search traffic was tanking. Why? Because activating the certificate is just the first step on the trail, not the destination.

Getting the SSL certificate itself is often straightforward. Many hosts now offer free certificates from providers like Let’s Encrypt with a simple toggle. For an e-commerce site, you might want an Organization Validation (OV) certificate to build more trust. Once installed, your site can be reached at https://. But wait — there’s more to consider.

The real work is in the details of the migration. You have to tell search engines that your site has permanently moved. This means setting up server-level 301 redirects to send all HTTP traffic and old links to the new, secure HTTPS version. My client’s traffic dropped because they skipped this, leaving Google to see two competing versions of their website. You also need to comb through your site and update every internal link to use the HTTPS prefix, from your navigation menu to image sources in a five-year-old blog post.

Your Post-Launch Checklist

After the redirects are live, you’re not quite finished. Run through these final checks to ensure a smooth transition:

• Update the URL in your analytics platform (like Google Analytics).
• Add the new HTTPS property to Google Search Console and submit your updated XML sitemap.
• Scan your site for mixed content errors. This sneaky issue happens when a secure page loads an insecure resource (like an image or script file) over HTTP, which can break the padlock in a user’s browser.

The Cost of Insecurity: Browser Warnings and the Future of the Web

I was hunting for a specific vintage watch online a few weeks ago. After some digging, I found a small collector’s site that had the exact model. I was thrilled. I added it to my cart, clicked “checkout,” and then my stomach dropped. Right there in the address bar, next to the URL, Chrome was practically shouting at me with a gray, ominous warning: Not Secure. What do you think I did? I closed the tab. Instantly.

That lost sale is the real cost of insecurity. This isn’t a bug or a glitch; it’s a deliberate, web-wide push by browser makers like Google and Mozilla to make the internet safer for everyone. They have spent years training us to look for the little padlock icon as a sign of trust. Now, they are actively flagging any site served over plain HTTP, making the absence of security an unmissable warning sign.

This warning erodes trust in a split second. For a client of mine, a local service provider, we saw their contact form abandonment rate plummet after we finally installed their SSL certificate. Before, users were getting a security warning right on the page where they were asked for their name and phone number. The message was clear: this place isn’t safe. The future of the web is encrypted by default. Any website without that padlock will increasingly be treated like a digital relic—untrustworthy and best avoided.