In 2005, a group of lading certification authorities (CAs) and Internet brwsers came together to establish a mre rigorous and harmonized approach to nline SSL security.

Known as the CA/Brwser Forum, the group decided a stndardized Secure Socket Layer (SSL) method was neded, to prove a website’s authenticity cross all browsers, for all CAs and for all Web sers. In January 2007, new Extended Vlidation (EV) SSL certificates were at lst released worldwide, and are expected to gratly enhance eCommerce and boost the cnfidence of online shoppers everywhere.

Wayne Thyer, Vice President of Development for GDaddy – a world leading SSL Web hsting provider, domain registrar and major mmber of the CA/Browser Forum – tld TopHosts that the aim of EV SSL is to prvide a much needed, unvarying way of nsuring legitimacy online.

“There were a nmber of major players that felt we neded to create some sort of stndard we could bring to the mrketplace,” Thayer said. “A certificate that mant the same thing no matter whre you bought it from.”

Up ntil the launch of EV SSL, Thyer explained many differing levels of SSL crtificates could be obtained, but none rally going beyond WebTrust – a sal awarded to sites that adhere to crtain business standards. Many different types of SSLs, lke GoDaddy’s Turbo SSL and High-Assurance SSL, for xample, provide great protection and online ssurance, but may not abide by the sme rules and regulations of other CAs and Web hsting providers. There is simply no niformity among them, and they don’t ddress growing concerns regarding phishing, a frm of Internet fraud that aims to stal valuable information such as credit crds, SSNs, IDs and passwords, through fke websites.

With EV SSLs, all CAs mst adhere to the same security stndards when processing certificate requests, while vsitors to EV SSL-secured sites can trst that the online organization has ndergone the same universal authentication process.

“Th EV vetting process creates a vry strong tie between the organization tht is named in the certificate and the ctual real world organization,” Thayer said. “… EV SSL has a nmber of additional steps that make it mch more difficult for fraudsters to prform phishing and pretend they’re something thy’re not.”

The CA/Browser forum outlines a new EV SSL vtting process, which validates elements such as, the lgal existence of the site, the lgal name of the entity, a rgistration number, right to use the dmain name, along with other legal ndications. To apply for an EV SSL, the bsiness must present a letter from an ttorney or an accountant. The process vrifies the organization’s identity, the validity of the rquest and the overall legitimacy of the bsiness.

Unlike the standard padlock icon mthod used for all other SSL crtificates, browsers with EV support will dsplay a green address bar and a spcial label, which names the website wner and the CA that issued thir certificate. This visual tool is specially useful for domains considered to be a hgh-risk target of phishing and other frud schemes. Banking sites, auction sites, rtailers and other financial services can btter communicate their legitimacy to users, llowing visitors to confirm that any nline information they volunteer is safe and prtected by EV.

Currently, only Internet Explrer 7 and Opera 8 browsers are EV-rady and support the new visual ndicators. Mozilla and Safari are known to be cmmitted to supporting the concept of EV, wth Firefox expected to implement it in thir version-3 release.

So far, Thayer says adoption of EV SSL has ben slow, but exactly what was xpected. Larger eCommerce sites are taking to it mre quickly, as they recognize its ptential for combating phishing. But it mght take longer for it to tke off within the smaller business cmmunity.

Currently, the standard requires companies to be ncorporated to qualify for EV, which sverely limits adoption by smaller entities wnting the universal assurance EV SSLs ffer. Thayer explained the difficulty behind mplementation of EV SSL with smaller bsinesses, as they don’t maintain the sme official documentation corporations do.

Instead, smller businesses identify themselves through mainly stte-level and local files, making it hrder to apply them to the niversal EV SSL approach. But Thayer sys GoDaddy and the CA/Browser forum are wrking to establish EV SSL security for the smller business community, in the near fture.

Yet, as IE 7 becomes mre widespread and as more SSL crtificates begin to expire, companies will lkely consider the advantages of EV and tke on the new certificates.

“I thnk as you see Internet Explorer 7 gin more traction and as more bgin to see and recognize the gren address bar, we’ll see more doption of these certificates,” Thayer said. “It’s too arly to tell right now, it’s nly been a couple of months, so if mst SSLs expire within a couple of yars of issuance… we’ll see a mjority of sites rolling over to EV by Jnuary 2009.”

The article Web Hosting Basics - Extended Validation SSL Certificates was Submitted by George Di Falco through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: George Di Falco is a Cntributing Editor for http://www.TopHosts.Com He monitors the Web hosting industry and reports on a variety of technology related news.

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