Why is Google Search Console reporting 'Insufficient HTTPS coverage on your site' for the fully HTTPS site fixfire.co.uk?
This error message from Google Search Console typically occurs when there are pages on a website that are not properly secured with HTTPS. It means that some pages on the website are still using HTTP instead of HTTPS, and therefore do not have a fully secure connection.
To fix this issue and ensure full HTTPS coverage for your site, follow these steps:
Review your website for mixed content: Mixed content refers to a webpage that is loaded over a secure HTTPS connection, but some of the resources on the page, such as images, scripts, or stylesheets, are loaded over an insecure HTTP connection. This can prevent your website from being fully HTTPS secure. Use a tool like Why No Padlock? to identify and fix any mixed content issues.
Update internal links: Make sure that all internal links on your website are updated to use HTTPS instead of HTTP. This includes links within your site's navigation, content, and footers. You can use an automated tool or a site crawler to identify and fix internal links.
Redirect HTTP to HTTPS: Set up proper redirection from HTTP to HTTPS so that all traffic to your website is automatically redirected to the secure HTTPS version. This can be achieved by adding an HTTP to HTTPS redirect rule in your website's server configuration or through your CMS settings.
Implement an SSL certificate: Ensure that your website has a valid SSL certificate installed and properly configured. This certificate encrypts the connection between the website and the user's browser, providing a secure HTTPS connection.
Submit the updated sitemap to Google Search Console: After making the necessary changes to your website, generate and submit an updated sitemap to Google Search Console. This helps Google to crawl and index the updated URLs, ensuring that they are recognized as HTTPS pages.
Request a crawl and index: Request a crawl and index in Google Search Console to let Google know that you have made the necessary changes to your website. This helps them to reevaluate your website's security and update their index accordingly.
By following these steps, you should be able to resolve the 'Insufficient HTTPS coverage' issue reported by Google Search Console and ensure that your website is fully HTTPS secure.
Additional Questions:
- How do I check for mixed content on my website?
- What are the best practices for HTTPS migration?
- What other tools can I use to analyze and optimize my website's SEO performance?