HTTPS
HTTP over TLS, encrypting traffic between browser and server; a lightweight Google ranking signal since 2014 and a baseline expectation…
Technical
Mixed content
Insecure http subresources loaded by an https page; browsers block active mixed content and may upgrade or block passive content.
In full
Active mixed content — scripts, iframes, stylesheets, XHR — is blocked outright by modern browsers, which can break rendering and therefore indexing of JavaScript-dependent content. Passive mixed content such as images may be auto-upgraded or blocked depending on browser policy. A Content-Security-Policy `upgrade-insecure-requests` directive is the usual blanket fix while hard-coded http URLs are cleaned up.
Example
A legacy analytics script loaded over http is blocked, so a client-rendered product grid never populates for crawlers.
Related terms
HSTS
A response header instructing browsers to only contact a host over HTTPS for a set period, eliminating the initial insecure request.
JavaScript rendering
The execution of a page's client-side JavaScript by a search engine so that content and links generated at runtime become indexable.
Third-party scripts
Externally hosted JavaScript such as analytics, tag managers, consent tools, chat widgets and ad code, which are a leading cause of poor…
Page experience
Google's umbrella term for signals about how users perceive interacting with a page, including Core Web Vitals, HTTPS and absence of…