SCHOOL SWALLOWED BY SEA MONSTER AS PUPILS RUN FOR COVER!

…insert other fake news/ false information as required! 🙂

Use of HTTPS is routine on modern websites, costs nothing and is a trivial feature to set up.

Use of HTTPS is not a sign of the reliability of the source and will be in routine use by most sources of fake news and false information. Behold on this page, false information (in the title, the rest is true!) on an HTTPS website with a padlock in the address bar.

HTTPS is important, but not as a tool for spotting fake news. What HTTPS does indicate is that a secure connection exists between the web browser in front of you and the server that you are communicating with. That means that information sent between you and the server is protected from eavesdroppers on the Internet. It is important when you are sharing sensitive information such as passwords or payment details.

It is also worth bearing in mind that HTTPS alone still doesn’t verify the trustworthiness of the server or the operators of the website i.e. you could send in your credit card details to a website and feel good about the HTTPS/padlock but you have no idea that the recipient won’t abuse the privileged information that you’ve just sent.