Most of the search engines like Google has started encouraging the website owners to install and secure their website through an SSL certificate. Some of the changes made by the search engines in their algorithms have asked to secure website. Google has started notifying their customers when they are landing on the website when they are landing on an unsecured website.
When an SSL is installed on the website, then the information you share and the website share is all encrypted and cannot be altered. The encrypted information will ensure that your website and visitor’s data is all secured and safe from the cyber attacks. No matter whether you are a blogger or e-commerce or a payment gateway or a business application, you must install SSL certificate on your website. There are different types of SSL Certificates both free and paid. The level of encryption is the same for both the free and paid versions however free SSL has some limitations on the functionality.
Difference between Free SSL and Paid SSL Certificate
Validation: Free SSL Certificate has only the domain validation which is the basic level of authentication. The certificate authority automates the process of verifying the domain. Free SSL Certificate is ideal for personal websites and blogs. On the contrary with the paid SSL, the certificate authority is responsible for manually verifying the identity of the website owner before issuing the certificate. If you are a business and wants to have the trust of the customers and visitor then paid SSL certificate should be your choice.
Certificate Validity: Free SSL are generally issued for 30 to 90 days. This means that you have to renew the free certificate regularly, which can be a little cumbersome task for you. On the other hand, paid SSL certificate usually has a tenure of 1 to 2 years and thus reduces the number of renewing process and the efforts.
Warranty: Paid SSL usually covered by warranty. The warranty acts as an insurance against any damage to the business for example data breach. The warranty claim can starts from $5000 to $1 Million depending on the type of SSL Certificate. However, there is no warrant with a free SSL Certificate.
Support: With a free SSL certificate you can get little to no help from the certificate authority, i.e., there is no support provided on the setup and ongoing issues. However, the resellers of SSL Certificate provides end to end and premium support services to the customers.
Server compatibility: Paid SSL Certificates are compatible with mostly all the web hosting services including dedicated server and VPS servers to set up. Free SSL certificate is only possible if the web hosting service provides for provisioning and support the certificate.
Choosing between the free and SSL certificate now makes sense for you? The answer depends on the type of website and how much it is important for you to gain the trust and confidence of your visitors and customers. If you have a personal website or a blog, the Free SSL should be your choice and for e-commerce and business website should invest in Paid SSL certificate.
