Chained Root – Single Root SSL

Are you searching for the right SSL certificate for your website?

Are you confused over which certificate to buy – a Chained Root one or a Single Root one?

Then let us help clear a few facts about these certificates to help you with your decision…

The debate over Chained Root SSL Certificates and Single Root SSL Certificate has been waging ever since SSL Certificates came into existence. Most website owners prefer to get a Single Root SSL Certificate for their website because of the fact that such certificates provide additional benefits and have certain plus points over Chained Root SSL Certificates.

Single Root SSL Certificates are generally issued by Certification Authorities (CA) that own their Trusted Root CA Certificates. This makes Single Root SSL Certificates much more trusted and secure. On the other hand, CAs that issue Chained Root SSL Certificates may or may not own their Trusted Root CA Certificate.

There are several other similar points of differentiation that give Single Root SSL Certificates an edge over Chained Root SSL Certificates. Check those out below:

Chained Root SSL Certificate

Single Root SSL Certificate

Issued by CA that does not own Trusted Root CA Certificate
Lesser browser recognition rate, Chained Root SSL dependent on original Trusted Root CA Certificate owner for their browser recognition
Not very trustworthy; Chained Root SSL Certificates become invalid as soon as the Trusted Root CA Certificate on which they are based goes out
Certificate may expire earlier depending on the validity period of the Trusted Root CA Certificate
Installation can be an issue because it needs to be installed on the web-server as well as website. Requires a technical person to install. No premium installation package available
May or may not work at industry standard encryption of 128/256 Bit
Requires paperwork and takes long time to get issued
Generally don’t carry any issuance insurance
No warranty
May or may not provide free site seal
Comparatively low priced

Issued by CA that owns Trusted Root CA SSL Certificate .
Recognised by almost all major browsers; most Single Root SSL Certificates have 99.9% browser recognition rate.
Highly trustworthy; the CAs issuing Single Root SSL Certificate have been around for a long time and are well established and stable
Certificate carries the same validity as the Trusted Root CA Certificate
Extremely simple installation which can be handled even by a non-technical person. Premium Installation packages also generally available.
Works at industry standard 128/256 Bit encryption
Does not require any paperwork. Most Single Root SSL Certificates are issued online within minutes
Most Single Root SSL Certificates have issuance insurance
Covered under warranty
Free Site Seal included. Makes site security that much more visible
Prices might be slightly higher, but highly cost effective

As you can see from the above table, Single Root SSL Certificates are preferable on account of the numerous benefits they carry. Chained Root SSL Certificates are viable only if you have a very low budget for an SSL certificate.

If you are interested in ordering a Single Root SSL Certificate for your website, you can do so here

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