Expect some problems on poorly configured devices and software

May 24, 2013 08:12 GMT  ·  By

Google has announced that it's beefing up the encryption in all of its SSL certificates by starting to use 2048-bit encryption across the board. It will be a gradual rollout, Google will start using the new certificates in August, but will complete the switch by the end of 2013.

In most cases and for most people, the switch won't mean anything, they won't notice anything, either problems or improvements, except, of course, for the fact that the data sent over the encrypted channels will be harder to break.

"We will begin switching to the new 2048-bit certificates on August 1st, to ensure adequate time for a careful rollout before the end of the year. We’re also going to change the root certificate that signs all of our SSL certificates because it has a 1024-bit key," Google explained.

But there will be some edge cases where the new certificates can cause problems, particularly in software on devices that don't get updated too often, things like some phones, printers, set-top boxes, gaming consoles and cameras.

To minimize problems, Google has published a list of requirements for software that uses Google SSL certificates as well as a list of configuration options that are likely to cause problems.

Google SSL (2 Images)

Google is upgrading the SSL certificates it uses
Google now uses 1024-bit encryption and will upgrade to 2048-bit
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