SSL Certificates: How They Secure Your Web Connections
Today, we’re exploring the complex yet fascinating world of SSL certificates. As web developers, we often encounter these certificates during our daily internet interactions, believing they simply make our connections secure. However, there’s much more beneath the surface. What are SSL certificates? How do they function? Why are they crucial? This post aims to unravel these questions, providing an intermediate to advanced understanding of SSL certificates. So, let’s dive in. The Essentials of Web Communication When discussing the internet, there are two primary players: the client (user) and the server. Imagine a user communicating with an Nginx server. In an unsecured scenario, the user sends a GET request to the server, and the server responds. This exchange is vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks, where a hacker can intercept and read the data. The Role of Encryption in Secure Communication To protect this communication, encryption is essential. There are two main types: 1....