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How many types of SSL Certificates are there?
Depending upon the costs, there are three types of SSL:
- Free SSL is acceptable only for low volume sites. But for others, it does more harm than good, as it throws an error message of connection being unsecure, whenever anyone accesses it.
- Shared SSL is ideal for those who want the benefits of SSL without the high costs of private SSL server. However, the URL will show your webhosting company’s name instead of your organization’s name. So it is mostly used for acquiring secure connection where no general public viewing is involved. For ex, staff login.
- Private SSL displays your organization’s name in the URL. Private SSL is costlier as you are required to purchase your certificate and you must have a dedicated IP address on which your SSL server will run.
Depending upon the CA’s vetting or validation processes for the applicant organization, there are three types of SSL:
- DV SSL: Domain Validation SSL certification can be easily obtained in minutes as only the requesting site owner’s domain is validated. The applicant just needs to send an email to the CA. DVSSL is compatible with all popular mobile and desktop browsers. Also, it shares similar browser recognition as the OV SSL except, that it gets issued quickly and is free from paperwork hassles.
- OV SSL: Organizational Validation SSL certification can be obtained mostly within a day. In this, both; the Company as well as their domain name ownership is validated. The name and address of the organization appears in the certificate and the site seal. It can be used to secure a public IP address as well as a domain name. OV is ideal for the companies who wish to pay less, but need to establish their good reputation online as through OV, their customers would be able to clearly establish the organization’s identity by “Click to Verify” Site seal.
- EV SSL: Extended Validation SSL certification is the highest, most secure, complex, trusted and therefore, costliest certification of all. This certificate gets issued in a minimum of 5 to 8 working days and the applicant is taken through a very stringent quality check process to confirm his identity. EVSSL activates the green address bar in all the advanced browsers. This certification clearly shows the organization’s and CA’s name in the URL bar. The name and address of the organization appears in the certificate and the site seal.
The EV SSL issuing authority checks the applicant organization on the following criteria:
- Should be a legally valid and an active entity.
- Should possess a registered office.
- Should not be in a country, where it’s prohibited from obtaining a certificate or doing business.
- Should not have presence on any prohibited or government denial list under the issuing authority’s jurisdiction.