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A simplified example of HTTP
Waldo is a webmaster. He sets up a domain, www.waldossite.com, which is a blog that allows people to donate to charity.
In order for his communications on the Internet to be understood, www.waldossite.com abides by the HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP). This is a set of rules governing how servers - the computers where the information on Waldo's website is stored—communicate with clients—end users, or site visitors.
Sara browses in Waldo's site, and decides to donate money to Waldo's favorite charity. She pulls out her credit card and clicks "donate now."
A window opens up. In the address bar, Sara sees
http://www.waldossite.com/donatenow.php.
Sara clicks that window shut and leaves the website. Why? Because www.waldossite.com has not promised to encrypt her information. She would have been putting her credit card number and her name out on the Internet in plain text, where anyone might be able to read it and steal it. Sara wanted her information to be encrypted, and www.waldossite.com was not a secure site.
Encryption experts call non-encrypted text "plaintext"
What could Waldo have done to keep Sara on his site?
