Cybercriminals are always finding new ways to make their move. Tips for safe browsing, therefore, change regularly. Some recommendations are outdated and gives a false sense of security. Today we disprove myth 1: "all https websites are safe".
When browsing the internet, it is always best to check whether a website is secured with an SSL security certificate. You can see a lock in the address bar or the 's' in https. Websites with SSL are therefore also called https websites, in contrast to http websites.
A lot of internet users believe that all https websites are safe. After all, there's a green lock, right? But this isn't always the case. To understand why this is not the case, it is important to know what this SSL security certificate does.
Https stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure and uses an SSL security certificate. This certificate encrypts the communication between the website and its visitors. This means that the information you enter on the website is processed securely, so that cyber criminals cannot intercept the data.
The information you send or receive via an https website is only visible to you and this website.
That's good news. Because when you enter your password or make payments, you can be sure that others will not be able to get their hands on your data. At least: if the website where you enter your data is also reliable. And there's a catch.
Cyber criminals can also request an SSL certificate for their fake website. They give you a false sense of security to make more victims. Even if the data flow between the website and you is secured, your data ends up in the wrong hands.
Always be careful when sharing important data, even if you see 'https'. Look at the address bar to check if you are on the site you want to visit. Learn to identify fake websites
You are right to mistrust http websites.