Google confirms it's giving HTTPS sites higher search rankings

Google will begin using website encryption, or HTTPS, as a ranking signal - a move which should prompt website developers who have dragged their heels on increased security measures, or who debated whether their website was "important" enough to require encryption, to make a change.

In a blog posted on Wednesday, Zineb Ait Bahajji and Gary Illyes, Webmaster Trends analysts for the search giant, said that they've been tweaking their search ranking algorithms to incorporate whether sites use secure encrypted connections. So far, the team has seen positive results.

"We've seen positive results, so we're starting to use HTTPS as a ranking signal," Google webmaster trends analysts Zineb Ait Bahajji and Gary Illyes wrote in a blog. "For now it's only a very lightweight signal - affecting fewer than one percent of global queries, and carrying less weight than other signals such as high-quality content - while we give webmasters time to switch to HTTPS. "But over time, we may decide to strengthen it, because we'd like to encourage all website owners to switch from HTTP to HTTPS to keep everyone safe on the web."

For webmasters and developers who want to make the switch to HTTPS, the team included a list of steps in its blog post, such as deciding the type of certificate you need, choosing a 2048-bit key certificate (which offers a strong level of encryption), and checking out Google's Site Move article for details on how to change your website address.

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