№ 51

HTTPS

Trustworthiness · Trust

SEO impact Medium

Effort Easy

Estimated ROI Good

Definition

A valid SSL certificate across the entire site.

Why it matters for Google

A basic prerequisite of trust; its absence = direct penalty.

Context within the E-E-A-T framework

Trustworthiness

Transparency, security, compliance, the non-negotiable foundation.

Official reference

Google Quality Rater Guidelines (Sept. 2025) ↗

Section 3.2 · 2.5.3

Standard requirement

Full guide coming soon

Actions to implement

01
Auto-renewal
02
No mixed content
03
HSTS enabled

Combine with

Bg Personal bio Mq Update Eq Online reputation Mt2 Legal notice

Check off your progress, saved in your browser.

Auto-renewalNo mixed contentHSTS enabledMeasure impact 30 days after implementation (GSC)Compare results at D+90 with a control pageAdd this element to the quarterly E-E-A-T auditDocument the implementation in the editorial logbook

Priority levelMedium

Implementation difficultyEasy

Time to result1 – 4 weeks

Pillar reinforcedTrustworthiness

YMYL requirementStandard

QRG section3.2 · 2.5.3

How to measure success

Audit the page before / after implementation (Screaming Frog + GSC)
Track the average position on targeted queries in Google Search Console
Watch organic CTR at D+30 and D+90
Compare with a control page that did not get the signal
Add this element to a quarterly E-E-A-T audit grid