Businesses are continuously focussing on their website as their primary means to gain more leads. They also use the website to collect customer information, i.e., demographics, login information, and even financial information. As a responsible company, they must ensure that the underlying data is in the servers. There is always a risk of attack from hackers, with studies showing a hacking attack every 39 seconds.
You would need to install an SSL certificate that can mitigate the risk of data breaches.
The businesses running multiple first-level subdomains can install comodo wildcard ssl to prevent any untoward incidents. While the features may vary a bit across the Certificate Authorities (CAs), they can help in protecting your website. We will learn more about their benefits through this article.
What is a Wildcard SSL Certificate?
The installation of an SSL certificate ensures that the interaction between the visitor’s browser and the webserver is encrypted. But different types of certificates cater to various use cases. For example, if your business runs multiple sub-domains at the same level, you must choose Wildcard certificates.
They can secure your primary domain and several subdomains at the same level. It is a single certificate with a wildcard character (*). It helps to secure several subdomain hosts under the same base domain. For example, if you choose to secure the subdomains news.example.com, blog.example.com, careers.example.com, etc., with a single certificate, the Wildcard SSL is the option for you.
Benefits of Wildcard Certificates
Securing several sub-domains
What will you do if you must secure multiple sub-domains with the primary domain? Yes, help is at hand through the Wildcard certificates. It will help to secure all the subdomains under a single roof. You may continue to add several subdomains during the entire lifecycle of the certificate.
Improved certificate management
The use of Wildcard SSL certificates emanates from website administrators finding it challenging to manage multiple certificates for several subdomains. They can help to consolidate the requirement onto a single certificate. Moreover, it makes management easier as it requires your team to interact with only one vendor. Managing renewals and dealing with support activities becomes easier too.
They are affordable
Can you imagine the costs associated if you had to install separate certificates for all your subdomains? The Wildcard SSL helps to consolidate and reduce the costs associated with cybersecurity. There would also have been an increase in human resources requirements to handle the multiple certificates. When you buy one from a renowned CA, you also get additional features like the warranty, money-back guarantee, Trust Seal that only adds to the perks of ensuring your website is secure.
Prevents security warnings
Web browsers have been providing emphasis on ensuring a safe browsing experience for the internet. Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox have been marking non-HTTPS websites as “Not Secure.” This warning was enough to scare visitors from the website and visit the competition. It led to an increase in bounce rate and lower visitor count, which also affected their conversions.
Other benefits
Some of the certificates ensure fast online validation and come relatively cheap too. It will allow you to have a free Trust Seal too. The certificates also ensure that the SEO value of the website is increased. You can choose the Comodo Positive Wildcard SSL for this purpose. Search engines like Google have provided lightweight weightage to HTTPS websites and ranked higher during a keyword search.
You can also choose a Multi-domain Wildcard certificate that will allow the business to secure up to 250 fully qualified domains through a single certificate. They also come with warranties that ensure they can be trusted.
Security risks that will make you think twice
Businesses must secure their website at all costs. If any hacker has access to the domain, they may create malicious sub-domains that would appear valid. The visitors would not be able to distinguish the sub-domains that are smeared and continue to visit them.
The web server may be compromised.
If businesses do not have proper safeguards, even the Wildcard certificates cannot help.
The certificate can be used across multiple servers that increases the risk. The web servers may be hacked, and the cybercriminals may host malicious elements for their dubious ends.
Security of the private key
Only the authorized person must have access to the private key. But it would be difficult for global teams to access it. It is better to have an audit log of the employees who are accessing the private key. The business must audit the records to trace if there was any unauthorized access.
On-time renewals
The certificates must be renewed on time. The IT team must set up notifications to inform them about upcoming renewals. If the certificate is not renewed on time, there could be errors on the site, and it would be insecure for visitors to visit the site. Notable brands have also faced this that has led to erosion of customer trust. Always keep in mind that updating lapsed certificates could be a severe issue.
Conclusion
There has been an increase in the number of hacking attempts at businesses. Therefore, it is a necessity that companies have robust systems to prevent these attacks. For larger businesses with multiple sub-domains, they must use Wildcard SSL certificates to protect the website. It can help to thwart data breaches and act as a line of defense against cyberattacks.