SSL Certificates Service is a digital certificate service provided by Alibaba Cloud in cooperation with certificate authorities (CAs) inside and outside China. This service allows you to purchase and deploy certificates in the SSL Certificates Service console. SSL Certificates Service allows you to redirect traffic to your websites or mobile applications from HTTP to HTTPS at minimal costs. You can use SSL certificates to authenticate users and encrypt data.
Relationship between SSL Certificates Service and HTTPS
You can purchase an SSL certificate instance in the SSL Certificates Service console and submit a certificate application to a CA for certificate issuance. After you install an issued SSL certificate on your web server, the web service transmits data over HTTPS.
If HTTPS is supported for the web service, an encrypted channel over SSL is used to transmit data between a client browser and the web server. This enables bidirectional encrypted transmission and prevents data in transit from being tampered with or intercepted.
Benefits of HTTPS support for websites
- Prevents data hijacking, tampering, and eavesdropping. SSL certificates allow you to enable end-to-end HTTPS encryption on your website. This way, data is encrypted when users interact with your website.
- Improves search engine rankings. If HTTPS encryption is enabled on your website, your website ranks higher in the search results. This improves the credibility of your website.
- Increases website traffic. If HTTPS encryption is enabled on your website, your website gains more trust from users who want to access your website. This increases the traffic to your website.
Features
The following table describes the features supported by SSL Certificates Service.
Module | Feature | Description | References |
---|---|---|---|
SSL certificate issuance and use | Purchase SSL certificate instances | You can purchase SSL certificate instances in the SSL Certificate Service console.
Then, you can use the instances to apply for Domain Validation (DV), Organization
Validation (OV), and Extended Validation (EV) certificates.
For more information, see Supported certificate types. |
|
Apply for certificates | You can use the purchased SSL certificate instances to apply for certificates. If certificate validation errors are returned by CAs, you must fix the errors in a timely manner. | Apply for a certificate | |
Install certificates | You can download issued certificates to your computer and install the certificates on your web servers. | Installation overview | |
You can deploy issued certificates to supported Alibaba Cloud services. This way,
you do not need to upload certificates to and configure SSL certificates for these
services.
For more information, see Supported Alibaba Cloud services. |
Deploy certificates to Alibaba Cloud services | ||
Revoke certificates | You can revoke certificates in the SSL Certificates Service console after your revocation requests are approved by CAs. The process to revoke certificates is secure and fast. | Revoke an SSL certificate | |
Request refunds for purchased certificates | You can request refunds for purchased SSL certificates in the SSL Certificates Service console if specific conditions are met. | None | |
Certificate renewal | Manually renew certificates | You can manually renew and update the certificates in the SSL Certificates Service console within 30 calendar days before your certificates expire. | Manual renewal |
Private Certificate Authority (PCA) | Issue private certificates | PCA allows you to build a private CA for your enterprise in the SSL Certificates Service console. This private CA can issue and manage self-signed private certificates within the enterprise. Then, you can use the private certificates to authenticate the identities of applications and encrypt and decrypt data within the enterprise. | Overview |
Website security detection | Check websites | SSL Certificates Service automatically checks the website assets that belong to your Alibaba Cloud account and the status of the SSL certificates that are installed on your websites. After the check is complete, you can determine whether to enable HTTPS for your websites. | View the status of SSL certificates |
Application information management | Manage contact information | SSL Certificates Service automatically saves the contact information that is used to apply for certificates as contacts. Alternatively, you can manually create contacts. This way, you can directly select existing contacts when you apply for certificates. | Manage contacts |
Manage company information | SSL Certificates Service automatically saves the company information that is used to apply for certificates as company profiles. Alternatively, you can manually create company profiles. This way, you can directly select existing company profiles when you apply for certificates. | Manage company profiles | |
Centralized certificate management | Upload certificates | You can upload existing certificates to the SSL Certificates Service console for centralized management. For example, you can deploy the certificates to Alibaba Cloud services with a few clicks. | Upload certificates |
Supported certificate types
SSL Certificates Service allows you to purchase DV, OV, and EV certificates. Different types of certificates provide different levels of security and are suitable for different types of websites.
Certificate type | Applicable website | Credibility level | Authentication strength | Security | Available certificate brand |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
DV SSL certificate | Websites of individuals | Moderate | Certificate authorities (CAs) verify the authenticity of a website, instead of an enterprise. | Moderate | DigiCert and GlobalSign |
OV SSL certificate | Websites of organizations such as public service sectors, enterprises, and educational institutions | High | CAs verify the authenticity of an organization or an enterprise. | High | DigiCert, Entrust, and GlobalSign |
EV SSL certificate | Websites of organizations such as large-sized enterprises and financial institutions | Highest | CAs perform strict authentication. | Highest | DigiCert and Entrust |
For more information, see Certificate brands supported by Alibaba Cloud.
Supported Alibaba Cloud services
When you use the Alibaba Cloud services that are described in the following table, you may need to upload and configure SSL certificates in the consoles of the services.
If you have purchased SSL certificates in the SSL Certificates Service console and the certificates are issued, or if you have uploaded third-party SSL certificates to the SSL Certificates Service console for centralized management, you can deploy the SSL certificates to some Alibaba Cloud services in the SSL Certificates Service console with a few clicks. You do not need to upload or configure the SSL certificates in the consoles of these services. The following table describes the services.
Alibaba Cloud service | Description | Certificate deployment |
---|---|---|
Anti-DDoS Pro and Anti-DDoS Premium | Anti-DDoS Pro and Anti-DDoS Premium are proxy-based services provided by Alibaba Cloud to mitigate volumetric DDoS attacks. |
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Web Application Firewall (WAF) | WAF is a security service provided by Alibaba Cloud to protect web applications against common attacks defined by the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) and mitigate HTTP flood attacks. This service protects your website assets against data leaks and ensures the security and availability of your websites. |
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Object Storage Service (OSS) | OSS is a secure, cost-effective, and high-durability cloud storage service provided by Alibaba Cloud. OSS supports RESTful APIs that are independent of the console. You can store and access all types of data in any application, at any time, from anywhere. |
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Application Load Balancer (ALB) | ALB is a fully managed online load balancing service provided by Alibaba Cloud. ALB supports Layer 7 load balancing and provides high-performance processing capabilities at Layer 7. ALB supports HTTP, HTTPS, and QUIC. |
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Classic Load Balancer (CLB) | CLB is an on-demand traffic distribution service provided by Alibaba Cloud. CLB supports TCP, UDP, HTTP, and HTTPS, and provides robust processing capabilities at Layer 4 and basic processing capabilities at Layer 7. |
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Alibaba Cloud Content Delivery Network (CDN) | Alibaba Cloud CDN is provided by Alibaba Cloud to offload network traffic from origin servers, prevent network congestion, and accelerate resource access. You can use Alibaba Cloud CDN to accelerate website content delivery in different regions and scenarios. |
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Dynamic Route for CDN (DCDN) | DCDN is a CDN service developed by Alibaba Cloud to accelerate static and dynamic content delivery. This service provides a solution to resolve issues of high latency, packet loss, and instability. These issues may occur due to various causes, such as unstable networks, unexpected traffic spikes, and network congestion. These issues may also occur if your website contains both static and dynamic content, content is delivered across network providers, or only one origin server is used. You can use DCDN to improve the overall performance of your website and accelerate content delivery to improve user experience. |
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ApsaraVideo Live | ApsaraVideo Live is an audio and video streaming platform provided by Alibaba Cloud. The platform is based on the next-generation content access and delivery network and large-scale, distributed, and real-time transcoding technology. The platform provides a live streaming service with quick access, high resolution, high fluency, low latency, and high concurrency. |
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