The people who use different sites and various search engines, really don’t skimp on the website security. This is the reason why measures such as HTTPS are used.
There is also a lesser known security measure, known as HSTS is also available now, for use as well. HSTS stands for HTTP Strict Transport Security. It helps you to protect your site, as well as protect SEO or Search Engine Optimization for your website too. So, without further ado, let’s jump right into the details.
HSTS is defined as a response header, that helps to inform the browser, that is can only connect to a certain website, only by using HTTPS according to KISS Pr. It increases not only the speed of the HTTPS websites, but also the security as well too. So, in order to know what HSTS truly is, you also need to have knowledge of HTTPS as well.
HTTPS or Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure, is a secure version of HTTP. It helps in encrypting the session, when a particular user connects to a website. It uses SSL certificate for encryption. In simple terms, it adds an extra layer of security in the mix as well. Therefore, it protects the data of the user from getting hacked.
This method is very useful for ecommerce, banking or even payment websites like PayPal. When a site uses HTTPS, it becomes clearly visible to the user, on the address bar. Since 2014, using HTTPS will also help you to rank your website higher on the Google Search Engine page. So, even though HTTPS is great, HSTS takes it up a notch. Let’s see how.
One main problem that was detected with HTTPS was that, websites using it can still be vulnerable to SSL stripping as well.
Therefore, for various websites that transfer confidential information several times a day, this can be a no go. Therefore, this is where HSTS takes over. It further improves the security, upon HTTPS. Thereby, this makes the whole process a lot more peace of mind for the user.
Another thing, that HSTS improves upon HTTPS is the page load speed and SEO as well. Loading times are very much crucial in website rankings on the Google Search results. Therefore, website owners will always want their site to be be more fast and responsive too. And that’s what HSTS gives you.
Also, making the website load faster will also help in improving the SEO ranking of the website as well. If the website only uses HTTPS, then it has to first convert from HTTP to HTTPS, which may introduce some amount of delay. But, if it’s HSTS, the website will load HTTPS from the beginning only.
Adding HSTS to your website is easy, as you’ll just have to add the HSTS Header Activated, and you’re done. You can easily do it yourself, or do it via your hosting website.
Conclusion
Using HSTS seems like a no-brainer in today’s world. You not only get increase security, but also improved website loading speed and SEO as well. HSTS is definitely here to stay.
