HTTPS
Technology & Computing abbreviation · Networking
| Stands for | Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure |
|---|---|
| Categories | Technology & Computing |
HTTPS stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure, a networking abbreviation.
HTTP carried inside an encrypted TLS connection, so passwords, card numbers and page contents cannot be read or altered by anyone between the browser and the server. The server proves its identity with a certificate from a trusted certificate authority, and the default port is 443.
Example: Always check that the payment page URL begins with HTTPS and that the browser shows no certificate warning.
Usage notes
Introduced by Netscape in 1994 for its Navigator browser, originally using SSL. For years HTTPS was limited to login and checkout pages, but free automated certificates from Let's Encrypt, which began issuing them in 2015, and browser "Not secure" labels made it the default for the whole web. HTTPS protects data only in transit: a phishing site can be fully encrypted, so the padlock confirms the connection is private, not that the site's owner is trustworthy.
Related abbreviations
More networking abbreviations
- EIGRP – Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol
- FQDN – Fully qualified domain name
- FTP – File Transfer Protocol
- FTPS – FTP Secure
- GRE – Generic Routing Encapsulation
- HTTP – Hypertext Transfer Protocol
- IANA – Internet Assigned Numbers Authority
- ICANN – Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
- ICMP – Internet Control Message Protocol
- IETF – Internet Engineering Task Force
- IMAP – Internet Message Access Protocol
- IP – Internet Protocol