Secure Servers
When you are considering sending credit card or other financial information over the Internet, the first thing to look for is whether or not the server is secure. A server is the computer that receives your information and sends other information back to you. If a server is not secure, there is no guarantee that your credit card number, or other information, is safe from unauthorized use.
A secure server is used to make sure that no one can intercept, or “listen in,” on data transmissions from your computer to the server and back. When you enter a secure portion of a Web site, your browser (the software you use to view Internet pages) becomes set to encrypt, or “scramble,” any information you will be transmitting to the server. When you send your information through the Internet, it is sent in a “scrambled” form. Only the server receiving the data holds the code to unscramble your information. This means that even if someone tries to intercept your data, all he will get is a jumble of meaningless letters and numbers. This method is called a “Secure Sockets Layer” (SSL). In order to be certain that your information is secure, your browser must support SSL. Two browsers that support SSL are Netscape and Microsoft Internet Explorer (for more information on these browsers, see below). If you are using a different browser (e.g., America Online), please call your internet service provider to make sure it supports SSL. Using this method makes it very unlikely that your information can be used by unauthorized persons. (Please note that no current version of “NCSA Mosaic,” a type of browser, supports SSL.)
You can usually tell you are connected to a secure server by the appearance of your browser. These changes vary from browser to browser, and sometimes vary from PC to Mac. Two of the most common browsers are Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer. It is easy to see if servers are secure using these browsers. Look for these visual cues:
Netscape Navigator
A very thin blue bar will appear towards the top of the browser window. Also, the “broken key,” which usually appears in the lower left corner, will turn dark blue, as in the example above.
The “open lock” in the lower left corner will become closed. See the above example.
Microsoft Internet Explorer