

Internet users are getting more aware of the importance of entering sensitive data only on websites that use the HTTPS protocol. In fact, according to the PCI Data Security Standard, using HTTPS instead of HTTP is a requirement for websites that collect and process payment information. HTTPS requests and responses are encrypted Which is better and safer, HTTP or HTTPS?Īs we have already discussed, when it comes to data security, HTTPS is undoubtedly the safer option. Therefore, HTTPS is a more secure protocol. HTTPS also helps protect against malicious activity such as on-path attacks, DNS hijacking, BGP hijacking, and domain spoofing. So if anyone intercepts the HTTPS requests and responses, they’ll only see the ciphertext and not any sensitive information. Once this process is completed, the client and the server will generate session keys for secure symmetric encryption.Īll subsequent communication between the server and the client is then encrypted with the session keys. Every web browser has a list of trusted CAs, and most browsers alert users when they receive invalid security certificates.ĭuring a TLS/SSL handshake, public-key encryption is used to authenticate the origin server’s public-key identity and the digital signature on the SSL certificate. These certificates are issued and signed with a private key by a Certificate Authority (CA), any trusted third-party organization that gives SSL certificates. In HTTPS, the public key is stored in a website’s TLS/SSL certificate. Also, anyone with the public key can verify that any data received from the private key owner is from an authentic source. In public-key encryption, the owner of a private key can encrypt data which anyone can then decrypt with the public key. This method of encrypting data involves using a public key and a private key to generate a short-term session key that is then used to encrypt the data transfer between the client and the server. HTTPS, on the other hand, uses the TLS (or SSL) security protocol to create a secure connection and only transmits encrypted data over the network. HTTP traffic is not encrypted and susceptible to eavesdropping and man-in-the-middle attacks. The main difference between HTTP and HTTPS may be summarized as follows: Websites that use HTTP start with in their URLs, and websites that use HTTPS start with in their URLs. Therefore, HTTPS is way more secure than HTTP. The key distinction between these two protocols is that HTTPS operates over TLS (SSL) to encrypt standard HTTP requests and responses. HTTPS is an extension of HTTP with encryption. What is the main difference between HTTP and HTTPS? HTTPS vs. When HTTPS is used, the HTTP requests and responses are encrypted, making it impossible for an attacker or eavesdropper to access any sensitive information contained within them. Basically, it is a secure version of HTTP. As a result, HTTPS protocol is sometimes referred to as HTTP over TLS or HTTP over SSL protocol. So what does HTTPS mean? HTTPS stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure and is an extension of HTTP protocol that uses the Transport Layer Security (or Secure Sockets Layer) protocol to establish an encrypted connection between a server and a web browser. Thus, HTTP protocol is not ideal for use cases where users must send sensitive data such as passwords or bank details over the internet. As a result, anyone monitoring the connection can easily read the encrypted data in those messages. HTTP requests and responses are sent over the internet in plain text format. An HTTP request is generated by user interactions on a web browser and sent to a web server, which generates an HTTP response and sends it back to the user. HTTP stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol and is the standard application layer network protocol used for communication and data transfer between browsers and web servers on the internet. HTTPS, let’s first get a general understanding of what these protocols are and how they work. Process of switching from HTTP to HTTPSīefore we dive into the nuances of HTTP vs.Which is better and safer, HTTP or HTTPS?.What is the main difference between HTTP and HTTPS?.
