Internet security—frequently asked questions
If you have a question not answered here
don't hesitate to
ask us.
What is a SSL
Certificate?
A SSL certificate is
a digital
certificate that
authenticates the
identity of a Web
site and encrypts
information that is
sent to the server
using Secure Sockets
Layer (SSL)
technology.
Encryption is the
process of
scrambling data into
an undecipherable
format that can only
be returned to a
readable format with
the proper
decryption key.
A certificate serves
as an electronic
"passport" that
establishes an
online entity’s
credentials when
doing business on
the Web. When an
Internet user
attempts to send
confidential
information to a Web
server, the user’s
browser accesses the
server’s digital
certificate and
establishes a secure
connection.
An SSL
certificate contains
the following
information:
- The
certificate
holder’s name
- The
certificate’s
serial number
and expiration
date
- A copy of
the certificate
holder’s public
key
- The digital
signature of the
certificate-issuing
authority
See also SSL
White paper
Top
How will my
customers know that
my site is secure?
An "https://" prefix in the URL and a key or
padlock icon in the browser's status bar
indicate that a Web site is secure.
An SSL-encrypted
session usually
starts once a
visitor signs in to
a secure area of a
Web site, such as
the checkout or
account-management
area of an online
store.
Top
Which browsers are
your SSL certificates compatible with?
Our
root
certificate
— the
Valicert
Class 2
Policy
Validation
Authority
— is
installed
in the
following
browser
versions:
-
Internet
Explorer
5.01
and
higher
-
AOL
5
and
higher
-
Netscape
4.7
and
higher
-
Opera
7.5
and
higher
-
Safari
on
Mac
OS X
10.3.4
and
higher
-
Mozilla
(all
versions)
-
Firefox
(all
versions)
-
Konqueror
(all
versions
-
Palm
OS
6.1
and
higher
(also
Treo
650)
-
BlackBerry
OS
4.1
and
higher
-
Sony
Playstation
Portable
2.5
and
higher
-
Microsoft
Windows
Mobile
2005
AKU
2
and
higher
-
Sun
Java
Runtime
(JRE)
1.4.2_07
and
higher
and
1.5.0_02
and
higher
-
ACCESS
NetFront
3.3
and
higher
-
Cingular
WAP
Gateways
(any
Cingular
phone
which
uses
WAP
version
1.X
for
Web
browsing)
Users
of older
browser
versions
may
receive
a
warning
that the
root
certificate
is not
trusted.
When
presented
with the
warning
those
users
can
simply
install
the root
certificate.
To do
so,
click
"View
Certificate."
Then,
when the
certificate
is
displayed,
click
"Install
Certificate."
Alternatively,
users of
older
browsers
may
download
and
install
the root
certificate
directly
from the
Repository.
Top
What
is the
encryption
strength
of your
SSL
certificates?
All
of our
SSL
certificates
support
both
industry-standard
128-bit
and
high-grade
256-bit
encryption.
The
actual
encryption
strength
on a
secure
connection
using a
digital
certificate
is
determined
by the
level of
encryption
supported
by the
user's
browser
and the
server
that the
Web site
resides
on. For
example,
the
combination
of a
Firefox
browser
and an
Apache
Web
server
normally
enables
up to
256-bit
AES
encryption
with our
SSL
certificates.
This
means
that
depending
on the
Web
browser
and Web
server
that
combine
to
establish
the
secure
connection
through
one of
our SSL
certificates,
the
encryption
strength
of the
secure
connection
may be
40, 56,
128, or
256 bit.
Top
How secure is
the hosting network
RisingLine uses?
World-Class
Data Centers
- World-class
networking
including
multiple OC-48,
OC-12 and OC-3
connections and
a fast gigabit
Ethernet
backbone.
- Connected to
multiple diverse
upstream
providers
totaling 4 Gbps
of Tier-1
Internet
Bandwidth.
- Full BGP
peering with all
providers.
-
Fully redundant
power and air
conditioning
supply, with
state of the art
fire protection
providing the
maximum possible
protection
against
potential
disasters that
could affect
your site.
-
Advanced smoke
detection and
fire suppression
systems.
- 24X7
monitoring of
building and
environmental
alarms by a
local staff as
well as a
centralized
Network
Operations
Center.
24x7 Physical
Security
-
Closed-circuit
cameras.
- 24-hour
guards and
physical
location
monitoring.
- Biometric
scanners and
secure card-key
access.
-
'Man-trap'
restricted
access to the
data centers.
- Locked cages
enclosing all
equipment.
Systems and
Network
Infrastructure and
Security
-
Best-of-breed
equipment for
routers,
firewalls, and
servers.
- Full network
redundancy.
- 24x7
dedicated/prevention
systems ensure
network
perimeter
remains secure.
- Automatic
email scanning
for virus
detection and
cleaning
provides
complete
protection.
(hosting plans
only)
Backup, Restore
and Disaster
Recovery
-
Enterprise-class
backup and
restore
technology
protecting your
data. *
-
Weekly full
backups and
daily
incremental
backups. *
-
Long term
off-site
retention. *
*(shared hosting
plans only -
dedicated server
plans require
additional
purchase)
Operating System
and Application
Management
- Hardened
operating system
builds. (hosting
plans only)
- Host based
security.
(hosting plans
only)
- Vigorous
patch
management.
(hosting plans
only)
- In-depth
24x7 monitoring
help to ensure
that our systems
are secure.
(hosting plans
only)
