Google is now warning webmasters to switch from non-secure HTTP to HTTPS, or risk losing traffic. The deadline is October 2017.
If you run a website, chances are, you rely on traffic to get sales through the door. If thats the case then now is the time to ensure your vistor security is in place- more specifically that your website runs on https (rather than http).
HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) is a way to make your website secure and protect ‘the integrity and confidentiality of your users’ data’ (Google).
Back in 2015, HTTPS was only a minor ranking signal that didn’t make a huge difference to your overall rankings, however, Google has continued to look at ways to improve and prioritise website security. The search engine wants to make sure that the websites people access via Google are secure and what they say they are.
Google Is Forcing You to Switch to HTTPS by October or Lose Rankings
Google is now sending out emails to Search Console users saying that if you don’t switch from your non-secure HTTP website to HTTPS, then you risk losing traffic and have a “NOT SECURE” notification pop-up on your website for all Chrome users. The deadline is October 2017.
Here is a copy of one of the emails that were sent out:
HTTPS is safe, HTTP is not
The reason for Google’s push towards HTTPS is website security. Earlier in 2017, Google sent out notifications that secure-data must be secured. This includes, but is not limited to sites that collect customer data such as credit-card information and even personal information. HTTP basically allows unauthorised people to tap into your computer and steal all of your valuable information. Google wants to avoid that by strongly encouraging the shift to HTTPS.
Concerned about this latest update?
Are you now thinking about moving your site to HTTPS or just want to know how your site will be affected? Our new marketing arm, Agilis Media can help assist with setup and implementation of your security certificate and ensure you’ve covered come October.