Can I use SSL (secure server) pages?
It's possible to use SSL security for your Web site. Doing so allows you to display secure, encrypted pages to your visitors.
You've probably seen SSL security in action when you purchased something online: your Web browser activates the "lock" icon and tells you that your connection is secure. Encrypted pages are normally used to collect credit card numbers and other secure information using CGI scripts.
To use SSL security on your Web site, you need what's called an "SSL certificate". The SSL certificate serves two purposes: it allows your visitors to encrypt the information they send to your Web site, and it proves your identity to customers.
There are two different options for getting an SSL certificate. To use SSL security, you would need to choose one of these options.
Option 1: Use a dedicated SSL certificate
The first option is to purchase an SSL certificate for your Web site. This allows people to securely connect to your site using addresses starting with:
https://www.example.com/
This type of address looks extremely professional and indicates to knowledgeable visitors that an independent third party has verified your identity.
We sell GeoTrust "QuickSSL" and "QuickSSL Premium" certificates that make this work. (A Premium certificate is the same as a standard QuickSSL certificate, but it also includes a clickable security seal image to place on your Web site.)
Our price for QuickSSL certificates is $99.00 per year. QuickSSL Premium certificates are $129.00. Buying a certificate through us saves you $90.00 compared to GeoTrust's standard retail price for QuickSSL certificates, and saves you $150.00 for QuickSSL Premium certificates.
Multi-year discounts are available: QuickSSL certificates are $179.00 for two years and $239.00 for three years; QuickSSL Premium certificates are $219.00 for two years and $289.00 for three years.
Certificates purchased through us include free installation. If you purchase a compatible certificate from another company or request a "self-signed" certificate, a $30.00 fee will apply each time you ask us to install or update the certificate. In either case, your Web site will also be switched to a "dedicated IP address", which is necessary for SSL certificates to work. The fee includes the dedicated IP address — we don't charge an extra monthly IP address fee like most companies.
It usually takes about one business day to purchase and install a custom SSL certificate from us. Please contact us if you would like to purchase an SSL certificate and let us know what type of certificate you would like; we'll take care of everything for you.
One thing to keep in mind is that a certificate only works with an exact hostname. For example, if you purchase a certificate that works with "https://www.example.com/", it won't work for "https://secure.example.com/" or "https://example.com/" (without the "www"). You'll need to choose one secure hostname and stick with it unless you want to purchase multiple certificates.
Please note that valid, fully working SSL certificates are nonrefundable and are not included in our money-back guarantee, even if you cancel your Web hosting service. This is because we pay most of the fee directly to GeoTrust, and they don't offer refunds. However, we can provide you with the Apache SSL certificate files you purchased, which may allow you to use them with a different hosting company.
Option 2: Share our SSL certificate
The second option is for you to share our existing SSL certificate. There's no extra charge for this: simply create links to your secure pages beginning with:
https://www.tigertech.net/ssl/example.com/
Note that the link begins with "https", not the normal "http". The extra "s" is what tells the visitor's Web browser to attempt a secure SSL connection. You should normally only use this type of link for individual pages that need to be secure; if you use it for your whole Web site, it will slow down your pages.
While this second method (sharing our certificate) allows your visitors to connect securely, it appears less professional than obtaining a dedicated SSL certificate, because our domain name is included in the address bar. Knowledgeable visitors may be concerned when the domain name in their address bar changes. Some people may even be suspicious of your site, which is probably not what you want when using SSL certificates.
Using a shared SSL certificate is a cost-effective solution if you just need extra security for visitors who already trust your site, such as employees who need to type a password into a private login page. You probably won't want to use a shared certificate if your visitors are strangers or customers who aren't sure whether they should trust you.
This option is also a good solution if you just want to use an "https://" path for an image file within a secure page. For example, if you sell using PayPal, and the secure PayPal page needs to include an image via "https://" (in order to prevent your customer from seeing a warning message), you can use our shared certificate when referencing the image file. You might tell PayPal to use a path like this to your image:
https://www.tigertech.net/ssl/example.com/images/logo.gif
A reminder about credit card number security
When you use an SSL certificate to collect credit card numbers, remember that it only protects the visitor's card number as it passes between his or her Web browser and your Web site. It does not help you securely store credit card numbers in a file or a database on the Web server, nor does it send the card numbers to you securely afterwards. Be sure your e-commerce system handles that end of the transaction in a secure manner (usually by using encryption to safely forward the data to another server at your credit card company).