SSL BENEFITS
A customer connecting to a secure website is assured of three things:
- Authentication: The company that installed the certificate really owns the
website.
- Message privacy: Using a unique "session key", SSL encrypts all information
exchanged between your web server and your customers, such as credit card
numbers and other personal data. This ensures that personal information cannot
be viewed if it is intercepted by unauthorized parties.
- Message integrity: The data cannot be tampered with over the Internet.
- Increasing Business: Certificates let you securely exchange sensitive
information online and increase business by giving your customers confidence
that their transactions are safe.
Full document
WHAT IS SSL ?
SSL = Secure Sockets Layer
The Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is a commonly-used protocol for managing the
security of a message transmission on the Internet. SSL has recently been
succeeded by Transport Layer Security (TLS), which is based on SSL. SSL
uses a program layer located between the Internet's Hypertext Transfer
Protocol (HTTP) and Transport Control Protocol (TCP) layers. SSL is
included as part of both the Microsoft and Netscape browsers and most Web
server products. Developed by Netscape, SSL also gained the support of
Microsoft and other Internet client/server developers as well and became
the de facto standard until evolving into Transport Layer Security. The
"sockets" part of the term refers to the sockets method of passing data
back and forth between a client and a server program in a network or
between program layers in the same computer. SSL uses the public-and-private
key encryption system from RSA, which also includes the use of a digital
certificate.
TLS and SSL are an integral part of most Web browsers (clients) and Web
servers. If a Web site is on a server that supports SSL, SSL can be enabled
and specific Web pages can be identified as requiring SSL access. Any Web
server can be enabled by using Netscape's SSLRef program library which can
be downloaded for noncommercial use or licensed for commercial use.
TLS and SSL are not interoperable. However, a message sent with TLS can
be handled by a client that handles SSL but not TLS."
The primary goal of the SSL Protocol is to provide privacy and
reliability between two communicating applications. The protocol
is composed of two layers. At the lowest level, layered on top of
some reliable transport protocol (e.g., TCP[TCP]), is the SSL
Record Protocol. The SSL Record Protocol is used for encapsulation
of various higher level protocols. One such encapsulated protocol,
the SSL Handshake Protocol, allows the server and client to
authenticate each other and to negotiate an encryption algorithm
and cryptographic keys before the application protocol transmits or
receives its first byte of data. One advantage of SSL is that it
is application protocol independent. A higher level protocol can
layer on top of the SSL Protocol transparently. The SSL protocol
provides connection security that has three basic properties:
- The connection is private. Encryption is used after an
initial handshake to define a secret key. Symmetric
cryptography is used for data encryption (e.g., DES[DES],
RC4[RC4], etc.)
- The peer's identity can be authenticated using asymmetric, or
public key, cryptography (e.g., RSA[RSA], DSS[DSS], etc.).
- The connection is reliable. Message transport includes a
message integrity check using a keyed MAC. Secure hash
functions (e.g., SHA, MD5, etc.) are used for MAC
computations.
OTHER INTERESTING LINKS
Introduction to SSL
OpenSSL
Book: Network Security with OpenSSL
Another introduction to SSL
HOW TO SEND YOUR CONTRIBUTION
The bank to send money to is:
ING Belgium, Avenue Marnix 24, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Account owner is:
OverByte sprl, rue de Grady 24, 4053 Embourg, Belgium
If you are in the EC, use this information:
International Bank Account Number (IBAN): BE80 3400 6181 2377
Outside of the EC, do a "swift" transfer:
Swift address: "BBRU BE BB 400", account number "3400 6181 2377".
From Belgium:
Account number: 340-0618123-77
For small contributions, you should consider mailing cash in an anonymous
envelop. Post is very reliable in Belgium. If it is also reliable in
your country, use that method. It is cheap for you and me.
Sorry, I can't accept credit card payment.
If you are in a EC country, then you must provide me a company name and
address with a valid VAT number otherwise I have to pay 21% VAT to the
belgian treasury. No problem outside of the EC. Of course I will send an
invoice for accounting purpose.
In all cases, I need name and address or I
have to pay 21% VAT to the belgian treasory. (VAT means Value Added Tax. It
is a kind of sale tax applyed almost everywhere in Europe).
I will mail an invoice for accounting purpose.
If you are in a large company, maybe you need a proformat invoice so that they
can send the money. Just ask me.
It is better for me you send the money in EURO currency. If you pay using
another currency, even US$, there will be change fees.
Of course you are welcome to add bank fee and VAT to your contribution :-)
Just ask your bank to charge you for all the fees and commission.
So I will receive the net amount you choosed.
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