Google to boost search ranks for secure sites
The logo in Google offices in Brussels on Feb. 5, 2014. Credit: Getty Images / Georges Gobet
Google is wielding the power of its dominant Internet search to push more websites into protecting the people using their services.
The move announced late Wednesday involves a change in Google's closely guarded formula for determining the rankings of its search results.
Websites that automatically encrypt their services will now be boosted higher in Google Inc.'s recommendation system. For now, encryption will remain a small factor in Google's ranking formula, but the Mountain View, California says it may put greater emphasis on the security measure in the future as part of its campaign to make it tougher for government spies and computer hackers to grab the personal data of unwitting Web surfers.
Users can tell if a website is encrypted if its address begins with "https."
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Sarra Sounds Off, Ep.16: From Island to island, how football helped overcome tragedy Newsday's Gregg Sarra talks to Carey football player James McGrath about how he has persevered after losing his parents at a young age, and to the Lahainaluna (Hawaii) High School football coach about how his team persevered after the Maui wildfires of 2023, plus a behind-the-scenes look at the All-Long Island teams photo shoot.
