Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is a protocol used in networking. When you type any web address in your web browser, your browser acts as a client and the computer having the requested information acts as a server. When client requests for any information from the server, it uses HTTP protocol to do so. The server responds back to the client after the request completes. The response comes in the form of web page which you see just after typing the web address and press “Enter”.
Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) is a combination of two different protocols. It is the most secure way to access the web. It is a combination of Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and SSL/TLS protocol. It is much more secure for sending a request to server from a client, also the communication is purely encrypted which means no one can know what you are looking for. This kind of communication is used for accessing those websites where security is required. Banking websites, payment gateway, emails and corporate sector websites are some great examples where HTTPS protocols are used.
What are benefits of using HTTPS over HTTP?
When you click to check out at an online merchant, suddenly your browser address bar says HTTPS instead of HTTP. The website you are working with has made sure that no one can steal your information. Instead of HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP), this website uses HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS). Using HTTPS, the computers agree on a “code” between them, and then they scramble the messages using that “code” so that no one in between can read them. This keeps your information safe from hackers. They use the “code” on a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), sometimes called Transport Layer Security (TLS) to send the information back and forth.
With HTTPS if anyone in between the sender and the recipient could open the message, they still could not understand it. Only the sender and the recipient, who know the “code,” can decipher the message due to which HTTPS is preferred over HTTP for secure transmission of important/confidential messages.
