What visual indications in a browser window inform users that they’re viewing a page from a secure server? In terms of browser real estate, what percentage of the display changes? When writing a security statement for a Web site, why would you want to mention these indications explicitly?
What will be an ideal response?
In Internet Explorer 6, the indication is the appearance of a padlock in the lower status bar. In Netscape 6, the unlocked padlock seen on non-secure sites becomes a locked padlock when visiting a secure site. In either case, a second indication is the “s” in the “https:” prefix in the URL. These visual changes represent less than one percent of the browser real estate and not very visible to a user. To reassure users, some sites will mention these indications explicitly in their security statement so that users will know what to look for when trying to verify that a site is secure.
Computer Science & Information Technology