Mar 2, 2009 : Extended Validation SSL Certs Turn Two

📅 March 2, 2009 - Adding more extensive investigation of the requesting entity to the Secure Sockets Layer security protocol, Extended Validation Certificates have celebrated their second anniversary, and, despite two years of continuous growth amounting to 11 thousand EV SSL certificates in use on the web, EV SSL only accounts for roughly one percent of all SSL certificates in use on the Internet.

According to UK web analytics firm Netcraft (netcraft.com), which has been following the development of EV SSL certificates for its entire two year lifespan, the world's 1,000,000 busiest websites have widely adopted EV SSL certificates, and that the more traffic an SSL site has, the more likely it is to use an EV certificate in general. More than one in four of the top 1,000 sites have extended validation of the SSL certificates.

Formally launched in February 2007, with online brands such as PayPal, eBay, Travelocity and Schwab leading the way as some of the earliest adopters. The popularity of EV SSL received a boost in 2008 when new web browsers and updates gave further credence to EV SSL certificates when they gave a "green light" to certified sites, assuring more than 70 percent of all Internet users with a status notification when they visit protected websites, according to Net Applications' (netapplications.com) latest browser market share report.

EV SSL certificate provider VeriSign (verisign.com) has announced that due to a number of recent implementations, EV SSL has reached a number of significant milestones including worldwide adoption, a surge in browser adoption, recognition and support from world renowned organizations and standards bodies and bottom line ROI metrics from end-user companies.



Two years after its launch, EV SSL certificates have been endorsed or recommended by leading research, industry alliances, government and standards bodies. In February 2009, the International Telecommunications Union acknowledged EV SSL as a globally recognized means for organizations to generate a high level of trust. A month earlier, the IRS issued a notice to e-file providers to use EV SSL.

VeriSign's business customers have also recorded gains. UK retailer Fitness Footwear saw a 13.3 percent drop in cart abandonment and a 16.9 percent increase in conversions to sales. Singapore ticket retailer SISTIC recorded a 14 percent increase in sales, and prescription medication retailer Canada Drugs recorded a 33 percent higher conversion rate, and a 27 percent increase in average transaction value.

"In more than 20 real world tests, EV SSL has been proven to increase sales, sign ups or other transactions on a Web site, which is perhaps why so many online businesses have adopted EV SSL," VeriSign product marketing vice president Tim Callan said in a statement. "When organizations use EV SSL Certificates, their end-users know they can trust they are on the site they intended to be on by seeing the green address bar. And when it comes to banking or shopping online, trust is everything. The adoption of EV SSL protection helps to preserve that trust the world over."