Google Chrome to name and shame 'non-secure' sites to boost consumer protecting HTTPS uptake
Google has upped its efforts to encourage websites to encrypt their data using HTTPS gateways by threatening to warn web users when they are visiting 'non-secure' sites using HTTP connections.
Google looks to boost web safety
The move would see the Google Chrome browser inform users when they enter an unsecure webpage where sensitive information like their login details and passwords could be at risk.
The firm said it would mark standard HTTP connections as non-secure to help encourage sites to up their security.
HTTPS uses cryptographic technology to secure communications travelling back and forth between the user’s device and the website. A wide implementation of the feature would help discourage government snooping and cyber-crime.
The announcement, posted on the Chrome development website, read: “We all need data communication on the web to be secure (private, authenticated, untampered). When there is no data security, the [website] should explicitly display that, so users can make informed decisions about how to interact with an origin.
“The only situation in which web browsers are guaranteed not to warn users is precisely when there is no chance of security.”
This comes after Google announced in August that it was looking to place secure websites using HTTPS security higher in its search rankings.