Holiday Shopping Online: The Big Secret is in The Little “S”– http & https

Before you begin your Holiday Shopping online, be sure to read this article. What is the big difference between http and https? The big secret is in the little “S” that means so much! This little computer tip could save you much grief.  Ordering products and doing business online with credit has become a daily norm. We’ve all seen the URLs that come with many of the transactions, but how important are they and do they hold any secrets that we should know about? Yes, they do and the secret is all about “S” for security.

 
HTTP stands for Hyper Text Transport Protocol. The S (big surprise)stands for “Secure”.  If you visit a website or webpage, and look at the address in the web browser, it will likely begin with the following: http://.

 
This means that the website is talking to your browser using the regular ‘unsecure’ language. In other words, it is possible for someone to “eavesdrop” on your computer’s conversation with the website. If you fill out a form on the website, someone might see the information you send to that site.
This is why you never ever enter your credit card number in a http website! But if the web address begins with https:// that basically means your computer is talking to the website in a secure code that no one can eavesdrop on. So why is this  is so important?
If a website ever asks you to enter your credit card information, you should automatically look to see if the web address begins with https://. ; If it doesn’t, there’s no way you should ever enter sensitive information like a credit card number, PIN, Social Security #, etc.
So, the next time you do online business, look for the little “s” that has a big job. Knowing the difference may save you from grief by keeping your transactions secure.

About the Author- Kathleen O’Keefe-Kanavos is an agented author with a contributing chapter in The Faces Behind the Pages That Inspire and has penned SURVIVING TRAUMALAND:  The Psychic Aspects of Healing.  She is a phone counselor for the R.A. BLOCH Cancer Foundation, a mentor for WE CAN, a women’s self help group on Cape Cod, a contributor to many On Line Magazines, C4Women, Intuition Now by Colette Baron-Reid, and a volunteer for many cancer organizations and online cancer groups.  She is currently working on her second book, SURVIVING RECURRENCE
Follow her: @ http://survivingcancerland.blogspot.com/ @ http://twitter.com/PsychCancerland @ http://www.facebook.com/pages/SURVIVING-CANCERLAND-The-Psychic-Aspects-of-Healing/142803307934?ref=m