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What is SSL?
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- Skip2 Networks
- Title
- Content Manager
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
SSL, or Secure Sockets Layer, was the original cryptographic protocol developed to ensure secure communication over a computer network, predating its successor, TLS. Its primary purpose was to establish an encrypted link between a web server and a web browser, making sure all data passed between them remained private and secure. When SSL was in use, you'd typically see "https://" in the website's URL and a padlock icon in your browser's address bar, signaling that the connection was encrypted.
While SSL was groundbreaking for its time, various vulnerabilities were discovered in its different versions over the years. As a result, it has been officially deprecated and succeeded by TLS (Transport Layer Security), which offers stronger security features and improved cryptographic algorithms. Although the term "SSL" is still widely used in common parlance to refer to the technology that secures web connections, it's important to recognize that modern web browsers and servers exclusively use TLS for security, even if people still refer to "SSL certificates."