At AOL, we make every effort to keep your personal information totally secure. SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is an industry standard for encrypting private data sent over the Internet. It helps protect your account from hackers and insures the security of private data sent over the Internet, like credit cards and passwords.
How to tell if SSL is being used
Look for the "s" in the start of the Web address:
• SSL is being used: https://
• SSL is not being used: http://
How SSL works
Encryption scrambles and unscrambles your data to keep it protected.
• A public key scrambles the data.
• A private key unscrambles the data.
Credit card security
When you make a purchase on AOL, we'll only finish the transaction if your browser supports SSL. As you enter your credit card number, SSL encodes it so it's transmitted in a format that prevents eavesdropping or data theft. When it's received by our secure server, your credit card number is never transmitted over the Internet again.
Using SSL with your Internet browser
• Your browser must be supported for SSL to be activated.
• Longer page download time can occur with SSL encryption.