In order to be accurate, we're going to get a bit detailed here. When
buying something on the Internet, there are three things to be sure of:
- Data you send is strongly encrypted.
- The site you're doing business with is the site you think it is.
- The site you're doing business with processes your credit card and
address information in a safe and responsible manner.
Points 1 and 2 are taken care of by SSL (Secure Sockets Layer),
the industry standard security protocol that the El Camino Store site uses
to communicate with secure browsers like Mozilla, AOL, and Internet
Explorer. When communicating with a secure server like ours, these
browsers encrypt the information you send in a way that is extremely
difficult for anyone else to decode. We've included a visual representation
below of what to look for in your browser window to see if you're viewing
a site securely.
Many security experts say the most important thing is what happens once
the merchant receives your order. At The El Camino Store, we take several
steps to keep things on our end as safe as possible. We don't keep a copy
of your credit card number on the web. While this is a minor inconvenience
- whether ordering on the Internet, you have to give us
the number every time you order - we believe it's the safest and most
honest way to do business.
Most of the activity on our site involves the viewing of materials we've
prepared and made accessible to everyone, so there's no need for these
pages to be "secure". With a product page for example, no security
risk exists because there is no "information" being exchanged.
Anyone can access the same pages by pointing their browser at http://www.elcaminostore.com.
The portion of the El Camino Store site we've made secure is, not surprisingly,
the order forms and any personalized pages. This is where you actually purchase the items you've selected.
The entire order process, takes place in a secure environment.
There are several ways to confirm that you're in a secure area. All
SSL capable browsers have a symbol to indicate secure mode. Specifically:
| Browser |
Symbol Location |
Normal (Insecure) mode Symbol |
Secure Mode Symbol |
| Microsoft Internet Explorer |
Lower Right |
NONE |
 |
| Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 |
To the right of the address bar |
NONE |
 |
| Mozilla Firefox |
Lower Right |
NONE |
 |
You can also tell when you're in a secure area because the URL to the left
of the colon changes from 'http' to 'https' to signify that a SSL protocol
is being used to communicate with the server. (http = HyperText
Transport Protocol; https = HTTP with SSL.)
One additional note: some browsers give you a warning when you go from
a secure area to a regular area. The aim is worthy enough - to ensure
that people know when they've left a secure server. But in practice, the
message is often a bit startling, and makes it look like you've done something
wrong even though you really haven't.
If you have any additional questions don't hesitate to contact us via
e-mail our Webmaster.
