Understanding HTTPS and how it works.
Credits
Previously I talked about how people were neglecting the basic things like backing up ones data. Now I want to go into detail about HTTPS and VPN networks and why they are important.
HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure)
To Understand how HTTPS works you need to understand the term HTTP. This protocol has one simple task , receiving requests and then doing it magic to deliver on the request it has been send. Now when you add extra security - ie a bidirectional tunnel - the protocol name changes to HTTPS.
Credits
This extract from (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTTPS) explains it better.
HTTPS consists of communication over Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) within a connection encrypted by Transport Layer Security or its predecessor, Secure Sockets Layer. The main motivation for HTTPS is authentication of the visited website and protection of the privacy and integrity of the exchanged data.
HTTPS was only used back in the day when valuable information was being shared but in today's world , where "hacking" and "keylogging" just to name a few are part of our everyday life , we can not take chances and thus the protocol began being used widely over the internet.HTTPS is essentially just Hypertext Transfer Protocol(HTTP) over Secure Socket layers (SSL) which is now known as TLS (Transport Layer Security)
HTTPS takes insecure networks and forms a secure connection. This process eliminates the potential for people to grab your data when it travels from the computer to the servers.
Today a fare amount of websites use HTTPS , mainly if there is a transaction that can take place or if important credentials are required. Just look in the Address bar for Steemit and you will see HTTPS right at the beginning of the field.
To get your website to use HTTPS , you have to create a Public Key Certificate for the server.
Server setup
This certificate must be signed by a trusted certificate authority for the web browser to accept it without warning. The authority certifies that the certificate holder is the operator of the web server that presents it. Web browsers are generally distributed with a list of signing certificates of major certificate authorities so that they can verify certificates signed by them.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTTPS)
Important info for non-administrative users
If you want certain sites to secure your data over HTTPS when they only offer HTTP you can download the "HTTPS Everywhere' extension available for Google Chrome, Firefox and Opera.
The HTTPS Everywhere extension fixes these problems by using clever technology to rewrite requests to these sites to HTTPS
(https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere%20)
You can download the extention at https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere%20 or on your respective webstores.
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Thanks
Richard