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We now recommend that most artists should add a custom SSL certificate their website.  

We explained what SSL is in What is SSL?

And we explain why we now recommend artists add SSL to their website in the follow up article, Why Your Artist Website will Soon Need an SSL Certificate.

A recent Google Chrome update has further convinced us in our belief you should add SSL to your artist website:  

Google Chrome recently released an update that has added a more prominent privacy warning to all websites, including artist websites, that do not include an SSL certificate.

Here's what Chrome looks like after the update (without an SSL Certificate):

 (Notice the little "i" icon)

The little page icon was replaced with a bolder circle with an "i" in the middle.  It demands greater attention than the previous icon.  In addition, if you click the icon this is the message you will see (in the screenshot below):

Here's what Chrome will look like when you click the "i" icon after the update:

 (Notice, it reads "Your connection to this site is not private.")

The solution is to add a custom SSL certificate to your website.

Here's what Chrome looks like WITH an SSL Certificate:

(Notice the reassuring green lock!)

So let's summarize the benefits of SSL:

1.  Your site will be more trusted by visitors due to the presence of the comforting green lock.  This means they will feel more secure when making a purchase.

2.  Your site will possibly rank better on Google.

3.  Your visitors' privacy will be maintained as bad guys will not be able to intercept the information they send your site.

4.  Your website will be protected from bad guys modifying your site's html (some unscrupulous public WiFi providers do this to inject malware or ads into a website).

5.  You will not have the new, more prominent privacy warning on your site.

Fortunately, if you are a FASO Artist Website customer, we are now rolling out Free Custom SSL Certificates to all customers. [1]  Look for an email from us over the next couple of weeks!

If you're not a FASO customer, we encourage you to give us a try!  We'll make sure and get the reassuring green lock on your site as part of our roll out!

Sincerely,

Clint Watson

FASO Founder, Software Craftsman, Art Fanatic

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FOOTNOTES:

[1] To qualify for the free custom SSL certificate, your domain must be managed by FASO because we are providing the certificate for Free with the domain registration.