Starting July 2018, Google will begin warning Chrome users if a site has not upgraded to HTTPS by marking it as “not secure” in the address bar.
This new update comes as an attempt to encourage more web publishers to upgrade to HTTPS and create a more secure internet.
Will this affect me?
Probably. About 50% of internet surfers worldwide use Chrome. That means that quite a significant chunk of your audience is most likely checking out your site on a Google browser.
Search Engine Journal provided the following list of countries and the percentage of internet users using Chrome for their browser in each. South America, Mexico, and Israel are the nations that will be most impacted by this change but the U.S. isn’t far behind.
- South America: 74.04 percent
- Mexico: 68.15 percent
- Israel: 66.77 percent
- Spain: 63.49 percent
- Asia: 50.42 percent
- Russia: 44.84 percent
- Africa: 43.7 percent
- U.S.: 42.63 percent
- Canada: 41.98 percent
- India: 41.38 percent
- UK: 40.75 percent
- Australia: 39.2 percent
What can happen to my site?
This can have a huge impact on your site’s bounce rate! A bounce rate is the rate at which a user comes to your site and then exits immediately. It generally means the site is not what they expected, they can’t find what they’re searching for, or they clicked on your site accidentally.
In this case, the user can come to your site, see a big red warning that says “Not secure” in their address bar, and then hightail it out of there! A computer virus is everyone’s worst internet fear, and there’s no better way to get one than to continue browsing a site explicitly labeled as “not secure.”
Here’s the example provided by Google in their announcement, showing what the address bar on a non-secure site will look like before and after the update.
As a result, you’ll see a higher bounce rate, fewer users engaging with your site’s content, poor e-commerce sales, and lower traffic overall.
What can I do?
The clock is ticking! It’s important you upgrade to HTTPS as quickly as possible to avoid being impacted by this change.
Hey Now! Media has the know-how and the knowledge to get your site its HTTPS certificate ASAP. We can make the change ASAP and keep your site safe.
Don’t delay – click below for more information on your HTTPS upgrade.
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