Sometimes it can be particularly challenging to know whether a website you’re using is both trusted and secure, especially for those with low computer literacy or little experience with using the internet. Fortunately, there are some basic steps anyone can take to assess whether a website is likely to be a safe choice, be it just for browsing, or for shopping through. Below we’re exploring the five questions any web users should ask themselves if they have reason to suspect that a website is not all it says it is.
Does the Website Have an SSL Certificate?
An SSL certificate is a form of modern web encryption that can only be awarded to a website through validation by a trusted third party. As such, its presence is a strong sign that the website is not only secure, but likely trustworthy. To identify whether a site has the SSL certificate, simply look at its URL – if it begins with “https://” this means it has a valid SSL certificate.
Is the Website URL Correct?
Sometimes when typing it’s possible to make a typo when entering a web address – especially if a website’s URL is complex, or features many vowels or double-consonants in its name. Malicious actors will often buy up URLs that resemble more popular ones, in the hope of catching users off-guard. As such, always make sure that the website you’re on is spelled correctly before proceeding if you have reason to suspect what you find.
Is the Website Well Rated On Trustpilot and the Like?
One of the best ways to ensure that a website is trust-worthy is to figure out whether it is well regarded by customer feedback. There are a number of ways to do this. For example, when it comes to assessing the trustworthiness of an e-commerce platform, often-times it’s easiest to look them up on the website Trustpilot – this site collects community reviews on websites and assesses them for customer-service, reliability and security. A poor rating on this Trustpilot would suggest that the website in question is best avoided, even if it passes the test of the other questions in this article.
Is the Website a Leader in Its Sector?
Sometimes the process of working out if a website is well regarded can be as simple as verifying that a website is a leader in its sector as they are unlikely to have risen to the top of their market if they did not provide good service. It is for this reason that Amazon, Google and Apple are all trusted organizations. This maxim applies to all sectors – for example, SBO.net is one of the leading sports betting platforms in the world, and works with affiliate bookmakers in countries from every continent. The fact that this comparison platform has successfully established business relationships with organizations from its sector from around the world points to its trustworthy nature and good standing. Furthermore, in order to do this, SBO adheres with all local requirements, such as in Spain where it complies with The Spanish Gambling Act of 2011 when providing its customers from that region with promotional offers and welcome bonuses from its affiliates. All of this points to it being a website in good standing with a strong pedigree of trust and consumer positive regard.
Does the Website Look Modern?
Assessing whether a website looks modern can be a very efficient way of identifying a trustworthy site. Of course you would need to corroborate your findings of this query with the other questions listed here before proceeding, but an old or broken looking web page can be a good signifier of an insecure website. This is because it suggests that it hasn’t been updated or maintained properly, and as such may be vulnerable to security risks more modern websites will be protected from.
Does the Website Ask For Unnecessary Permissions/Information?
If a website asks you for any unusual permissions or information this is normally a good sign that you should avoid it, especially if these questions come unprompted. Never give your confidential information to a website you’re not certain can be trusted, nor one that asks for your bank information unbidden, or makes any unusual requests like permission to access your storage or webcam.