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    SSL & Web Security Learning Center

    Expert guides and tutorials on SSL/TLS certificates, encryption, PKI, and digital security. Explore the bylines, dates and sources in each guide before applying it to your environment.

    205
    Guides published
    Oct 22, 2026
    Last guide updated
    Daniel Rehak
    Contributor articles
    Primary sources
    CA/B Forum, RFCs, vendor docs

    Browse by Topic

    Code Signing
    28 articles
    SSL Basics
    16 articles
    Guides & Tutorials
    63 articles
    Security
    56 articles
    Comparisons
    13 articles
    Installation
    25 articles
    SSL Configuration
    4 articles

    205 articles found

    Security

    Why Does My Website Say 'Not Secure'? Causes and Fixes

    The 'Not Secure' label means a page loads over HTTP without a valid SSL certificate. Learn what triggers the warning in Chrome, Firefox, and Safari, the five common causes, and the step-by-step fixes that remove it for every visitor.

    My-SSL TeamJun 28, 202613 min
    Comparisons

    Wildcard vs Multi-Domain SSL: Which Certificate Do You Need?

    Wildcard SSL secures unlimited subdomains of one domain; multi-domain (SAN) certificates cover many separate domains. Compare coverage, validation, cost, and the EV wildcard rule, then pick the right certificate for your topology.

    My-SSL TeamJun 27, 202613 min
    SSL Basics

    Symmetric vs Asymmetric Encryption: How TLS Uses Both

    Symmetric encryption uses a single shared key; asymmetric encryption uses a public/private key pair. Learn how each works, their trade-offs in speed and key distribution, and why TLS combines both to secure every HTTPS connection.

    My-SSL TeamJun 25, 202613 min
    SSL Basics

    What Is a Certificate Authority (CA)? How SSL Trust Works

    A certificate authority (CA) is the trusted third party that issues SSL certificates and vouches for who controls a domain. Learn how CAs verify identity, sign certificates, earn browser trust through root programs, and can be distrusted when they break the rules.

    My-SSL TeamJun 17, 202611 min
    Security

    TLS Cipher Suites Explained: How to Read Them and Choose the Right Ones

    A cipher suite is the bundle of algorithms that secures a TLS connection. Learn to read a suite name like TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_GCM_SHA256, why forward secrecy is the part that matters most, how TLS 1.3 cut the list to five AEAD suites, and which weak suites to disable.

    My-SSL TeamJun 16, 202614 min
    Security

    What Is SNI? Server Name Indication, ESNI, and Encrypted Client Hello

    Server Name Indication (SNI) lets one IP host many HTTPS sites, each with its own certificate, by naming the hostname in the TLS handshake — in plaintext. Learn how SNI works, how it differs from multi-domain certificates, and how Encrypted Client Hello (ECH) finally encrypts it.

    My-SSL TeamJun 15, 202613 min
    Security

    Certificate Revocation Explained: CRL vs OCSP in 2026

    How certificate revocation actually works — CRLs, OCSP, and OCSP stapling — why browser soft-fail undermines all of them, and why Let's Encrypt, the CA/Browser Forum, and Firefox spent 2025 moving back to CRLs and short-lived certificates.

    My-SSL TeamJun 15, 202615 min
    Guides

    How to Redirect HTTP to HTTPS: Apache, Nginx, IIS & WordPress

    Force HTTPS with a single 301 redirect: copy-paste configs for Apache, Nginx, IIS, and WordPress, the X-Forwarded-Proto rule that fixes redirect loops behind Cloudflare and load balancers, and why HSTS is the necessary second step.

    My-SSL TeamJun 13, 202614 min
    Comparisons

    ECC vs RSA SSL Certificates: Which Key Algorithm Should You Choose?

    ECC and RSA secure TLS equally well, but differ in key size, signing speed, and legacy-client support. Compare ECDSA P-256 against RSA-2048 — security strength, performance, CA/Browser Forum rules — and pick the right key for your next CSR.

    My-SSL TeamJun 11, 202613 min
    Comparisons

    Let's Encrypt vs Paid SSL Certificates: What Actually Differs in 2026

    Free and paid SSL certificates encrypt traffic identically — the real differences are validation level, lifetimes, wildcards, rate limits, warranty, and support. A fact-based comparison with a clear decision rule for when paying makes sense.

    My-SSL TeamJun 10, 202612 min
    Security

    SSL Certificate Errors: What Each One Means and How to Fix It

    Every common SSL error decoded by its browser code — expired certificates, name mismatches, untrusted issuers, protocol failures and revocations — with the exact cause and fix for each, plus the OpenSSL commands to diagnose them.

    My-SSL TeamJun 9, 202614 min
    SSL Basics

    Self-Signed Certificates: What They Are, Risks, and When to Use One

    A self-signed certificate encrypts traffic but proves nothing about identity, so browsers flag it as untrusted. Learn how it differs from a CA-signed certificate, the real risks, when self-signing is fine, and how to create one with OpenSSL.

    My-SSL TeamJun 9, 202613 min

    All guides by topic

    Every guide in the Learning Hub, grouped by subject. 205 articles covering SSL/TLS certificates, code signing, S/MIME, PKI and server configuration.

    Code Signing

    28 guides

    SSL Basics

    16 guides

    Guides

    63 guides

    Security

    56 guides

    Comparisons

    13 guides

    Installation

    25 guides

    How these guides are written and reviewed

    Guides are written by Daniel Rehak and other contributors. Check each guide’s sources and date against the current issuer or platform documentation. My-SSL also sells certificates; product recommendations have a commercial relationship to this site. Send corrections with the page URL and supporting source.

    Where a rule has a future effective date, the guide states what applies today and marks the future change separately. The most recently updated guide in this library was updated on Oct 22, 2026.

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