As frustrating as keeping up with Google can sometimes be, or as strange as some of their standards may seem, they’ve done a lot to clean up the web. Today, content-heavy websites with interesting, useful information make it to the top of the search engine rankings (most of the time).

Compare that to the early 2000s, before Google went public, when pretty much anything went on the web. Heck, that even was still the case just 5 years ago.

We’ve talked about Google docking (or boosting) your rankings based on whether you have HTTP secure (HTTPS) before. That’s in place.

What Google’s Got Up Its Sleeve That It’s Now Revealing

Beginning in October, Google will show the words “not secure” in their Chrome browser’s address bar whenever you type data into website that doesn’t use HTTP secure. And they’re right. Not having HTTPS in place means the data you enter is more exposed to cyber criminals. Practically, that means any website which starts with http:// without the “https://.”

And when you browse in “Incognito” mode, the HTTPS warnings will appear on all pages you visit. Google also plans to expand this to all Chrome users eventually.

Why Can Google Force The Issue on This?

Google’s got the power because they have what the market wants. Chrome dominates the browser market. Chrome has more than 50% market share, with the next closest being Apple’s Safari at 15% or so:

As long as the market desires what Google has in Chrome, they’re going to be able to continue to shape the internet. Don’t count on that changing anytime soon, by the way.

Microsoft Edge is trying to compete directly with Chrome by being faster. But as you can (just barely) see, it’s the lowest blue line on the chart there, with around 1.0% of overall market share. And even though you can’t see this well either, that’s gone down slightly from the same time last year.

Fortunately, HTTPS Isn’t A Big Time Or Financial Cost

HTTPS securely encrypts any information going to or from your server (or host). So, the bad guys only get encrypted data if they happen to nab it.

Installing HTTPS takes just a few simple steps:

1. A hosting service with a dedicated IP address
2. Buying a HTTPS certificate (usually $50 – $150 per year)
3. Activating the certificate
4. Installing the certificate (usually just a few simple steps)
5. Updating your site to HTTPS

Whew! That’s it. Not really a big deal, is it? Be thankful for that.

HTTPS makes the web a more secure place. So it’s a good thing.

We’ll see what Google comes up with next.