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Internet security—frequently asked questions Email or bookmark this page

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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:

See also SSL White paper Link opens in new window

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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.

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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.

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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.

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How secure is the hosting network Risingline uses?

World-Class Data Centers

24x7 Physical Security 

Systems and Network Infrastructure and Security

Backup, Restore and Disaster Recovery

*(shared hosting plans only - dedicated server plans require additional purchase)

Operating System and Application Management

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