Google Chrome Browser Will Drop Secure Label For HTTPS Websites
In addition to dropping the “Secure” label for HTTPS websites, Google Chrome will also mark all HTTP websites as “Not Secure”.
In a recent announcement, Google talked about some changes coming in 2018 with how it’s browser, Google Chrome, will notify users regarding the security of a website. Google is basically reversing the way the Chrome browser works now when letting users know if a website is secure or not.
Currently, if you go to a website that uses HTTPS (and assuming all called resources on the page are also using HTTPS), you’ll see a nice green indicator saying that the website is Secure:
But if you go to a website that doesn’t use HTTPS (so only using HTTP), then currently two things happen:
- The website displays an icon indicating the website is not secure:
- If you type any data in any form, the icon indicator will change to say Not Secure
According to Google, the current way that the Chrome browser notifies users of website security was assuming that the majority of websites were not secure, as they said, “Previously, HTTP usage was too high to mark all HTTP pages with a strong red warning”. There has since been a pendulum swing however, and now Google says that the majority of websites are becoming secure, using HTTPS.
So with that, the announced change will aim to basically swap the notification regarding the security of a website. Here is how a secure website using HTTPS will look like in Chrome later this year:
And here is how a non-secure website with only HTTP will look like in Chrome:
And eventually they will have all pages on a non-secure website with only HTTP labeled with this:
This is all in a good push to secure the web. Don’t wait to get your website on HTTPS. Not only will it make visitors feel safer, but having HTTPS also helps in the SEO ranking of your website.