What is encryption and how is it used to protect my account information?
Encryption is the transformation of data into an unreadable form, and decryption is the reversal of that process. Both encryption and decryption require the use of a special code, usually referred to as the key. The security level of the key is dependent upon the browser itself and whether or not the browser is using 40-bit or 128-bit encryption. The encryption data provides a strong degree of protection against tampering while data is moving through the Internet. Many browsers today offer both 40-bit and 128-bit versions of SSL. The 128-bit encryption provides a much higher level of security, as it is more than 300 X 1024 more secure than 40-bit encryption. Major commercial browsers, including the 4.0 and higher version of Netscape(TM) Navigator, 4.0 and higher versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer(TM), and 4.0 and higher versions of AOL(TM), include this software encryption. We suggest that customers use a browser that supports 128-bit encryption when visiting this site.
