Timeline of HTTPS adoption

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This timeline describes the gradual increase in websites and clients using HTTPS.

Full timeline

Year Month and date (if available) Entity type Entity name Stage Details
1994 Browser Netspace Navigator Protocol support Netscape Communications created HTTPS in 1994 for its Netscape Navigator web browser, originally for use with the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol.
2000 May Standard RFC 2818 RFC 2818 of the Internet Engineering Task Force describes the standard for HTTPS, using HTTP over {{|Transport Layer Security}} (TLS). This is considered a superior, more secure form of HTTPS than HTTPS over SSL.
2008 July 24 Website Google (GMail) Opt-in HTTPS-only Google adds a setting in GMail for users to always use HTTPS. Even before this, users could (since the inception of GMail) access it securely by explicitly typing https:// in the browser. With the new setting, users who have opted in to it will be redirected from HTTP to HTTPS.[1]
2010 January 12 Website Google (GMail) Default HTTPS-only Google switches all GMail users to redirect to HTTPS; users can change their setings to not redirect to HTTPS. Previously, the default option for this setting was to not redirect, and users had to explicitly choose the option to redirect HTTP to HTTPS.[2]
2010 June 17 Browser extension HTTPS Everywhere The Electronic Frontier Foundation and The Tor Project, Inc launch HTTPS Everywhere, a Firefox extension, to make Firefox use HTTPS where possible.[3] The extension would evolve over the coming years. As of 2017, it is supported on Firefox, Chrome, and Opera.[4]
2011 January Website Facebook Opt-in HTTPS-only Facebook begins allowing logged-in users to opt in to have all their Facebook browsing encrypted by HTTPS.[5]
2011 March 15 Website Twitter Opt-in HTTPS-only Twitter begins allowing logged-in users to opt in to have all their Twitter browsing encrypted by HTTPS.[6]
2011 October 18 Website Google Search Default HTTPS-only Google makes HTTPS (using SSL) the default option for its search users who are logged in on google.com (its US site; regionally branded sites are not affected).[7][8][9] In particular, webmasters receiving traffic from Google Search will no longer be able to know the search terms that led to a specific visit.[10][11]
2012 February 13 Website Twitter Default HTTPS-only Twitter makes HTTPS the default for all logged-in users.[12][13][14]
2012 March Website Google Search Default HTTPS-only Google makes secure search the default globally for signed-in users. Previously, the change was limited to users on google.com.[15]
2012 November Website Facebook Default HTTPS-only Facebook rolls out its transition to HTTPS by default for all users, beginning with North America.[16][5]
2012 November 19 Standard RFC 6797 Default HTTPS-only The HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) standard is published, after being approved on October 2.[17] The standard allows a website to set a header specifying a time period over which the client must connect to the website only via HTTPS. This protects against protocol downgrade attacks and cookie hijacking, and also avoids the extra latency involved in redirecting HTTP to HTTPS.
2013 August 21 (actual release), August 1 (announcement) Website Wikipedia Default HTTPS-only Wikimedia Foundation turns on HTTPS for all logged-in users (announcement August 1).[18][19]
2015 June 12 Website Wikipedia Default HTTPS-only The Wikimedia Foundation publishes a blog post stating that all properties (including Wikipedia) are being switched over to HTTPS; previously, HTTPS was used only for logged-in users. It seems the switch is being made immediately.[20][21][22]
2017 May 22 Website Stack Overflow Default HTTPS-only Stack Overflow announces that it has migrated to HTTPS, after four years of work on the migration. All other Stack Exchange websites are also moved over to HTTPS.[23][24]
  1. Rideout, Ariel (July 24, 2008). "Making security easier". Google. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  2. Schillace, Sam (January 12, 2010). "Default https access for Gmail". Google. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  3. Eckersley, Peter (June 17, 2010). "Encrypt the Web with the HTTPS Everywhere Firefox Extension". Electronic Frontier Foundation. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  4. "HTTPS Everywhere". Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  5. 5.0 5.1 Constine, Josh (November 18, 2012). "Facebook Could Slow Down A Tiny Bit As It Starts Switching All Users To Secure HTTPS Connections". TechCrunch. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  6. "Making Twitter more secure: HTTPS". Twitter. March 15, 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  7. "Making search more secure". Google. October 18, 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  8. Boulton, Clint (October 18, 2011). "Google Makes HTTPS Encryption Default for Search". eweek. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  9. Sullivan, Danny (October 18, 2011). "Google To Begin Encrypting Searches & Outbound Clicks By Default With SSL Search". Search Engine Land. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  10. "Making search more secure: Accessing search query data in Google Analytics". October 18, 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  11. Sullivan, Danny (October 22, 2011). "Google Puts A Price On Privacy". Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  12. "Securing your Twitter experience with HTTPS". Twitter. February 13, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  13. "Should All Web Traffic Be Encrypted?". Coding Horror. February 23, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  14. Brinkmann, Martin (February 14, 2012). "Twitter Makes HTTPS Default For Signed In Users". Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  15. "Bringing more secure search around the globe". March 5, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  16. Asthana, Shireesh (November 15, 2012). "Platform Updates: Operation Developer Love". Facebook. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  17. "HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS)". November 19, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  18. Lane, Ryan (August 1, 2013). "The future of HTTPS on Wikimedia projects". Wikimedia Foundation. Retrieved September 25, 2016. 
  19. Eaton, Kit (August 2, 2013). "After NSA's XKeyscore, Wikipedia Switches To Secure HTTPS. The Wikimedia Foundation has announced it's pushing ahead with plans to secure its online systems due to NSA targeting.". Fast Company. Retrieved September 25, 2016. 
  20. Welinder, Yana; Baranetsky, Victoria; Black, Brandon (June 12, 2015). "Securing access to Wikimedia sites with HTTPS". Wikimedia Foundation. Retrieved September 25, 2016. 
  21. Thomas, Karl (June 15, 2015). "Wikipedia switches to HTTPS by default". WeLiveSecurity. Retrieved September 25, 2016. 
  22. Farivar, Cyrus (June 15, 2015). "Wikipedia goes all-HTTPS, starting immediately. "We believe that the time for HTTPS by default is now."". ArsTechnica. Retrieved September 25, 2016. 
  23. Craver, Nick (May 22, 2017). "HTTPS on Stack Overflow: The End of a Long Road". Retrieved November 19, 2017. 
  24. Taylor, Anita (May 22, 2017). "How Stack Overflow Flipped the Switch on HTTPS". Stack Overflow. Retrieved November 19, 2017.