Today’s blog post looks at ways to keep your .au website secure and SEO friendly. We consider the value of having an encrypted connection to your website, the impact of monitoring site security and tips to help you boost your SEO credibility.

Make sure you offer an encrypted connection

Firstly, something we’ve mentioned many times before – if a website shows a padlock icon in the toolbar before the domain name, it signals that it is protected by a Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificate and that it uses a secure https:// protocol (instead of http://). When a website uses this protocol, it means that information sent from the user's device to the website is encrypted, which, as explained by .au registrar Netregistry, assists in optimising your Google ranking and is a quick and easy way to build trust and confidence in your website.

SSL is an option provided by many .au registrars listed here.

Monitor the security of your website

Website security indicates that your site is safe and has not had malware or other types of harmful software installed. Registrars such as Crazy Domains offer site protection to identify malware and other security issues and defend your website against hackers. They explain that this works through a site scanner that crawls your website and alerts you to vulnerabilities that if left alone, could lead to your site being blacklisted or flagged as unsafe by search engines.

Leading search engine Google explains how this works in protecting users from malicious websites in their operational security compliance overview:

“Google helps tens of millions of people every day to protect themselves from harm by showing warnings to users of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Apple Safari when they attempt to navigate to websites that would steal their personal information or install software designed to take over their computers.”

So by strengthening your website’s security, you are building rapport with both customers and search engines.

Boost SEO credibility and help search engines find you

The importance of your overall SEO credibility is highlighted in this checklist from digital marketing professionals at prosperitymedia.com.au. They explain the benefits in improving your overall SEO credibility by including authorised internal links and other elements web crawlers search for, such an XML sitemap to assist browsers in navigating your website. 

Ensuring your .au website is a secure, authorised source not only provides a better user experience, but also influences the likelihood of your website being ranked highly by search engines. A trusted online presence is ever important in today’s digital world, and as a website owner you have the power to influence your brand's online visibility significantly.

Have a question, some feedback or idea for a future blog post? Email us at blog@afilias.com.au today.