You may own your domain name and control your website. But who decides whether your connection to it can be trusted?
Every day, we visit websites, check our bank accounts, send messages and make payments. Most of us rarely question the small padlock in our browser. We assume the connection is secure.
But who makes that decision?
What Is a Certificate Authority?
A certificate authority (CA) is an organisation trusted to issue digital certificates that help verify websites.
When you visit a website using HTTPS, your browser checks its certificate to help establish that you're communicating securely with the intended website.
Your browser relies on organisations most people have never heard of to help establish that trust.
Who Gives Them That Authority?
Browser and operating-system providers, including Google, Mozilla, Apple and Microsoft, determine which certificate authorities their software will trust.
These authorities must meet security requirements and undergo audits.
No system is immune to mistakes, poor security practices or compromised keys.
When something goes wrong, the consequences can reach far beyond a single company.
Does the Padlock Mean a Website Is Safe?
Not necessarily.
HTTPS helps protect the connection between your browser and a website. It encrypts information travelling between them and helps confirm you're connected to the domain shown in your address bar.
It doesn't guarantee the business is legitimate, the information is truthful or the website is free from scams.
A fraudulent website can have a perfectly valid HTTPS certificate.
A secure connection doesn't automatically mean a trustworthy destination.
Where Does Handshake Fit?
Handshake approaches a different part of the internet's trust structure: naming.
There are three separate questions worth understanding:
- Who controls the name? Handshake allows people to control top level names through cryptographic keys.
- How do we find the website? A resolver translates a name into information your device can use.
- Can we trust the connection? HTTPS certificates help your browser establish a secure connection.
Handshake changes how names can be owned and resolved. It does not automatically replace the certificate authorities browsers rely upon.
Owning a Handshake name does not mean every browser will automatically recognise it or trust its HTTPS certificate.
For a practical introduction, see How Do I Experience It?.
Who Controls the Trust?
Most people don't choose which certificate authorities their browsers trust. Those decisions are largely made by software providers, with security standards, audits and industry oversight forming part of the process.
There's a reason those safeguards exist. They protect billions of internet users.
But the system also raises a question about control.
You may own your domain name. You may control your website.
But someone else still decides which certificates your browser trusts.
Understanding that distinction is part of understanding digital ownership.
Because owning your name is only one part of controlling your presence on the internet.
Erwin Groen ⚪️ OwnTheDot