PayPal are upgrading their service to make it more secure. As an online seller, you’ll have received emails with the subject *Upcoming security upgrade may impact your PayPal service*. We explain what the upgrade is and how it affects you.
In a nut shell:
For those in a rush, here’s the quick summary of what you’ll need to ensure your website will work after PayPal’s upgrade:
- Your website needs an SSL certificate
- The SSL certificate must be SHA-256
- Your website hosting must support TLS 1.2 and HTTP/1.1 for connections to PayPal
We can confirm all Ecenica web hosting packages are fully compatible with PayPal’s changes. We include a free SHA-256 SSL Certificate and support TLS v1.2 and HTTP/1.1
What are PayPal’s TLS 1.2 and SHA-256 updates?
PayPal are performing upgrades to their service to improve security. The changes are happening throughout late 2016 and 2017 and there are 3 notable changes:
- All websites will need a SSL certificate
- The SSL certificate has to use the latest SHA-256 format
- Your website will need to send information to PayPal using TLS 1.2 and HTTP/1.1. Support for older versions of TLS and HTTP will be dropped.
Timeline of PayPal’s changes
30 September 2016 – SHA-256 SSL required.
June 2017 – TLS 1.2 and HTTP/1.1 required for all HTTPS connections. TLS v1.0 and TLS v1.1 connections will be refused.
June 2017 – All IPN verifications must use HTTPS for postbacks. HTTP postbacks support removed.
Why does it matter?
If you are running an online shop and taking payments using PayPal then you will need to check your website meets the changes before June 2017. Otherwise you will be unable to take payments via PayPal once the upgrades have been completed.
Do you support TLS 1.2, HTTP/1.1 and SHA-256?
Yes, SHA-256, TLS 1.2 and HTTP/1.1 are supported on Ecenica servers. Any Ecenica web hosting package or Managed VPS includes support and a Free SHA-256 SSL certificate.
How can I transfer my website to you?
Yes, we offer a range of high-performance web hosting packages which support PayPal’s security upgrades. We also include a Free website migration so can help you transfer your websites from your old web host. Contact us today if you would like further details.