Types of SSL Certificates - How To Select It?
Many of you don’t know about different types of SSL certificates and how they are different? In this post, we have explained their types in detail. SSL Certificate can be thought as a digital passport of any business/website. It is a protocol; a set of algorithms designed, managed, and updated time to time to make it robust by Certificate Authorities (CA).
A web server secured by SSL, sent a copy of its certificate to the browser when the connection is established. After that, the browser tells the server about the reliability of the certificate then the server forwards the cognizance in the form of a digital signature. As a result, a secured session is established. Hence, safe communication and data exchange takes place. It is obvious that by this time when cyber crimes/frauds/attacks are elevating you will be well aware of the need for SSL certificate. Not only it secures communication and other stuff it boosts up your conversion rates and customers by creating a trust factor. Hence, be it any e-business, website, webpage, and web docs, each and every need to be secured via digital certificates.
Here is a list of different type of SSL certificate based validation level and securing domains and code:
- Domain Validation (DV) SSL Certificate
- Organization Validation (OV) SSL Certificate
- Extended Validation (EV) SSL Certificate
- Wildcard SSL Certificate
- Multi Domain (SAN) Certificate
- Code Signing Certificate
Based on Validation Level
1. Domain Validation (DV) SSL Certificate
It is the lowest priced SSL certificate. Why? Because to issue Domain Validation SSL there is only a need to verify domain authority. No other background personal as well business verification will be done in this process and hence is cheaper than any other certificate. However, small-scale business websites can benefit from this SSL certificate type like having only the transaction page secured and acquiring the trust of the end-users.
2. Organization Validation (OV) SSL Certificate
Organization Validation SSL is a step forward than DV SSL in terms of reliability and security. CA not only ensures the integrity of the domain but also verifies your business background. Cross verification of the physical address of your business entity, city, state, and country takes place; that takes up to 5 days. OV helps to attract a large number of crowds of customers than that of DV.
3. Extended Validation (EV) SSL Certificate
As the name suggests, validation of this certificate is much more extended. With the uncompromising and scrupulous procedure of validation, EV SSL is the most trusted and reliable certificate for all. CAs have strict rules abiding the authentication of yours as well as your business’s peculiarity. It comes with a green bar which is the holy symbol of the most secure and trusted websites over the network.
Based on Securing Domains & Code
1. Wildcard SSL Certificate
Wildcard SSL is a good money-saving package besides fully secured business. Along with securing the main domain of your website, it also covers up all sub-domains of the first level of that domain. For example, if you have issued a Wildcard SSL certificate for www.yourdomain.com then login.yourdomain.com, store.yourdomain.com, mail.yourdomain.com, livechat.youdomain.com, support.yourdomain.com, and discussion.yourdomain.com gets secured with it. It is symbolized by an asterisk (*). The benefits of this type of certificates will be maximum cost-saving, quick & easy management, and renewal.
2. Multi Domain (SAN) Certificate
Sometimes people get confused between Wildcard SSL Vs SAN Certificate. A single wildcard SSL certificate secures your domain and its first-level sub-domains, whereas a single Multi Domain SSL / SAN certificate secures multiple hostnames on a single base domain. For example, if you have a SAN certificate for www.yourdomain.com then it will also secure www.yourdomain.org, yourdomain.uk. The number of domains secured by SAN merely depends on the brand of the issued certificate.
3. Code Signing Certificate
Digitally signed by an authorized CA, Code Signing certificate secures your codes, scripts, sources, and contents of your website. Having approved your digitally signed code by authorized CA ensures customers and end-users that they can download anything fearlessly from your website.
Conclusion:
The primary reason to get SSL is to secure the ongoing information between two parties like the browser and the server. Many people have confusion about which is SSL is fit for their business. The above piece of information will help potential buyers to select the best SSL certificate for their website by enhancing their knowledge in a broader sense. Many vendors provide SSL certificates at a lower price, so it is advisable to check for available discounts before getting an SSL certificate. Because there are SSL certificates available in the market at price starting from $7 to $1500.
