A Scheme to Encrypt the Entire Web Is Actually Working

The nonprofit Internet Security Research Group hopes to encrypt all internet websites with a program called Let’s Encrypt. The goal, according to the group’s founder, is 100 percent encryption for the internet, moving from http to https, reports Andy Greenberg for Wired. The program reduces surveillance, yet may also shield malicious sites. The short code is automated, easy to use and free, and Let’s Encrypt has become the third largest certificate authority of such encrypted sites, after Comodo and Symantec. Many news sites like Wired, BBC News, the New York Times and YaleGlobal do not use such encryption. “Not using an encrypted connection means a hacker using the same Wi-Fi at your favorite coffee shop could steal your passwords or banking information, and that your internet service provider can better track your online activity and sell your private data to advertisers,” reports Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai for VICE Motherboard. “But it also means that a repressive government can know exactly what articles or sites you’re visiting, and could even censor only certain pages within a website.” Countries that censor expect tech firms to hand over encryption keys. – YaleGlobal