HSTS

Definition

HSTS stands for HTTP Strict Transport Security. It is a web server directive that informs user agents and web browsers to only connect with HTTPS, instead of HTTP. This upgrade from HTTP to HTTPS happens automatically, providing a layer of protection by enforcing secure connections, mitigating attacks such as cookie hijacking and protocol downgrade attacks.

HSTS Relevance For SEO

While HSTS doesn’t directly affect SEO rankings, its ability to improve site security positively impacts user experience, which is an important factor in SEO. By ensuring a secure and reliable connection, user trust in your site increases, leading to potentially reduced bounce rates and improved traffic – factors that can indirectly influence your site’s SEO performance. Moreover, Google has a slight preference for websites using HTTPS, so HSTS can aid in establishing an overall secure environment for your website.

HSTS Best Practices

1. Apply HSTS over your entire domain: Rather than just securing pages where sensitive data is handled, it’s recommended to implement HSTS across your entire site. This prevents any unsecured pages from becoming potential targets.
2. Set a long max-age: The max-age directive specifies the duration for which the HSTS policy is valid. A longer max-age (ideally at least one year) ensures continued security by extending the period during which browsers automatically upgrade HTTP requests to HTTPS.
3. Include subdomains: If your website uses subdomains, ensure that your HSTS policy includes these by using the ‘includeSubDomains’ directive. This prevents attackers from exploiting vulnerabilities in unsecured subdomains.
4. Preload HSTS: Get your site on the HSTS preload list maintained by web browsers. This is a list of sites hardcoded into browsers that only use secure connections, offering an extra layer of protection. Note, however, that removal from this list can be a slow process, so be cautious with this step.