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Unlike displaying a regular web page, when a person
requests a secured web page (https://), the browser and
the server must go through a series of requests and acknowledgements,
which take place automatically. Here is a brief outline
of what happens:
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You enter a URL such as https://www.mysite.com
in your browser window. The https indicates that you
want your browser to initiate a secure session with
the server |
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The server responds by sending the site's
certificate |
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The browser checks the certificate information
for validity |
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The browser then creates a session key,
which is encrypted with the server's public key, and
sends it to the server |
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The server then decrypts this information
using it's private key |
Both the browser and server are now using the same secret
session key, and the little lock icon will appear on your
browser window. All further information sent between the browser
and the server will be automatically encrypted, as long as
you continue using the https:// protocol. |
