Why SSL/TLS Matters

SSL/TLS certificates encrypt data in transit between clients and servers, preventing eavesdropping and man-in-the-middle attacks. Expired or misconfigured certificates can expose sensitive data. Older protocols like TLS 1.0 and 1.1 have known vulnerabilities and should be disabled. A strong configuration uses TLS 1.2 and 1.3 with a valid, non-expiring certificate.