SSL Certificates help against Phishing and Pharming

Phishing and, recently, pharming pose constant threats to Internet users whose sensitive information is under siege by crackers and other cyber crooks. An SSL certificate from PerformanceHost.net can clip the wings of Internet criminals and help prevent Internet users from being victimized by phishing and pharming schemes when attempting to visit your Web site.

Phishing schemes – attempts to steal and exploit sensitive personal information – typically try to trick victims into accessing fraudulent sites that pose as legitimate, trusted entities, such as online businesses and banks. Because perpetrators of such attacks will be using and registering domains that resemble those of the spoofed sites, PerformanceHost.net, through its stringent fraud-prevention measures, will detect the schemes and deny certificate requests for suspicious domains.

More sophisticated than phishing, pharming revolves around the concept of hijacking an Internet Service provider’s (ISP) domain name server (DNS) entries. When a “pharmer” succeeds in such DNS “poisoning” every
computer using that ISP for Internet access is directed to the wrong site when the user types in a URL (e.g., www.ebay.com).

SSL certificate technology can help prevent pharming attacks, as well. In essence, a “pharmer” simply will not be able to obtain an SSL certificate from PerformanceHost.net, as he/she does not control the domain for which the certificate is requested.

By protecting your Web site with a PerformanceHost.net SSL certificate Internet users that attempt to access a site that poses as yours will be instantly alerted that there is a problem with the supposedly secure connection:

• No lock icon: Because CAs usually won’t issue a certificate to fraudulent phishing or pharming sites, such sites usually do not use SSL encryption. Internet users, therefore, are alerted by the absence of a padlock icon in their browser’s status bar.
• Name mismatch error: A pharming site could try to use a certificate issued by a CA for a domain owned by the attacker, but the user’s browser will warn the user that the visited URL does not match the certificate presented by the fake Web server.
• Untrusted CA: A pharming site might attempt to use a certificate issued by an untrusted CA. In this case, the user’s browser will generate the following warning: “the security certificate was issued by a company you have not chosen to trust.”

The alert Internet user will instantly abandon his/her activities/transactions when presented with such warnings. Thus, a PerformanceHost.net SSL certificate provides business owners and wary, savvy Internet users with an effective weapon against phishing, pharming and similar cyber swindles.

SSL Authentication

Before Starfield Technologies issues an SSL Certificate, the applicant’s company or personal information undergoes a rigorous authentication procedure that serves to pre-empt online theft and to verify the domain control and, if applicable, the existence and identity of the requesting entity. Only through thorough validation of submitted data can the online customer rest assured that online businesses that utilize SSL certificates from Starfield Technologies indeed are to be trusted. A High Assurance Starfield Technologies certificate guarantees that the entity that owns the certificate is who it claims to be and has a legal right to use the domain from which it operates.

SSL Certificates are only issued to entities whose domain control and, depending on certificate type, business credentials and contact information have been verified. Thus, a Starfield Technologies SSL certificate guarantees that the entity that owns the certificate is who it claims to be and has a legal right to use the domain from which it operates.

Starfield Technologies issues three types of SSL Certificates, each of which relies on authentication of a number of elements:
High Assurance Certificate — Corporate:
Starfield Technologies will authenticate that:

• The certificate is being issued to an organization that is currently registered with a government authority.
• The requesting entity controls the domain in the request.
• The requesting entity is associated with the organization named in the certificate.

High Assurance Certificate — Small Business/Sole Proprietor:
Starfield Technologies will authenticate that:

• The individual named in the certificate is the individual who requested the certificate.
• The requesting individual controls the domain in the request.

Medium Assurance (i.e., Turbo SSL) Certificate:
Starfield Technologies will authenticate that:

• The requesting entity controls the domain in the request.

View all of the Starfield Cerificates that PerformanceHost.net offer

Keep Your Customers Data Safe

A PerformanceHost.net SSL Certificate secures safe, easy and convenient Internet shopping. Once an Internet user enters a secure area — by entering credit card information, e-mail address or other personal data, for example — the shopping site’s SSL certificate enables the browser and Web server to build a secure, encrypted connection. The SSL “handshake” process, which establishes the secure session, takes place discreetly behind the scenes, ensuring an uninterrupted shopping experience for the consumer. A “padlock” icon in the browser’s status bar and the “https://” prefix in the URL are the only visible indications of a secure session in progress.

By contrast, if a user attempts to submit personal information to an unsecured Web site (i.e., a site that is not protected with a valid SSL certificate), the browser’s built-in security mechanism will trigger a warning to the user, reminding him/her that the site is not secure and that sensitive data might be intercepted by third parties. Faced with such a warning, most Internet users likely will look elsewhere to make a purchase. A “padlock” icon in the browser’s status bar indicates that a secure session is in progress.

Up to 256-Bit Encryption

PerformanceHost.net SSL certificates support both industry-standard 128-bit (used by all banking infrastructures to safeguard sensitive data) and high-grade 256-bit SSL encryption to secure online transactions. The actual encryption strength on a secure connection using a digital certificate is determined by the level of encryption supported by the user’s browser and the server that the Web site resides on. For example, the combination of a Firefox browser and an Apache 2.X Web server enables up to 256-bit AES encryption with PerformanceHost.net certificates.

Encryption strength is measured in key length — number of bits in the key. To decipher an SSL communication, one needs to generate the correct decoding key. Mathematically speaking, 2n possible values exist for an n-bit key. Thus, 40-bit encryption involves 240 possible values. 128- and 256-bit keys involve a staggering 2128 and 2256 possible combinations, respectively, rendering the encrypted data de facto impervious to intrusion. Even with a brute-force attack (the process of systematically trying all possible combinations until the right one is found) cracking a 128- or 256-bit encryption is computationally unfeasible.

What is an SSL Certificate?

An SSL certificate is a digital certificate that authenticates the identity of a Web site to visiting browsers and encrypts information for the server via Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology. A PerformanceHost.net certificate serves as an electronic “passport” that establishes an online entity’s credentials when doing business on the Web. When an Internet user attempts to send confidential information to a Web server, the user’s browser will access the server’s digital certificate and establish a secure connection.

A certificate serves as an electronic “passport” that establishes an online entity’s credentials when doing business on the Web. Information contained in the certificate includes:

• The certificate holder’s name (individual or company)*
• The certificate’s serial number and expiration date
• Copy of the certificate holder’s public key
• The digital signature of the certificate-issuing authority

To obtain an SSL certificate, one must generate and submit a Certificate Signing Request (CSR) to a trusted Certification Authority, such as PerformanceHost.net, which will authenticate the requestor’s identity, existence and domain registration ownership before issuing a certificate.
*High Assurance Certificates only. Turbo SSL Certificates only contain the domain name and no information on the individual or company that purchased the certificate.

Public and Private Keys

When you create a CSR, the Web server software with which the request is being generated, creates two unique cryptographic keys: A public key, which is used to encrypt messages to your (i.e., the certificate holder’s) server and is contained in your certificate, and a private key, which is stored on your local computer and “decrypts” the secure messages so they can be read by your server. In order to establish an encrypted link between your Web site and your customer’s Web browser your Web server will match your issued SSL certificate PerformanceHost.net to your private key. Because only the Web server has access to its private key, only the server can decrypt SSL-encrypted data.

SSL Certificates Enable Safe and Convenient Online Shopping

A PerformanceHost.net SSL Certificate secures safe, easy and convenient Internet shopping. Once an Internet user enters a secure area — by entering credit card information, e-mail address or other personal data, for example — the shopping site’s SSL certificate enables the browser and Web server to build a secure, encrypted connection. The SSL “handshake” process, which establishes the secure session, takes place discreetly behind the scenes, ensuring an uninterrupted shopping experience for the consumer. A “padlock” icon in the browser’s status bar and the “https://” prefix in the URL are the only visible indications of a secure session in progress.

By contrast, if a user attempts to submit personal information to an unsecured Web site (i.e., a site that is not protected with a valid SSL certificate), the browser’s built-in security mechanism will trigger a warning to the user, reminding him/her that the site is not secure and that sensitive data might be intercepted by third parties. Faced with such a warning, most Internet users likely will look elsewhere to make a purchase.