[Olivaw]

Just wondering how important it is to check on the certificate on a website?

If my browser alerts me that a certificate cannot be verified, how much of a deal is that? I understand that phishing emails try to trick you to sites pretending to be a bank/ebay/paypal and then this alert would be relevant. If on the other hand I am sure that my url is correct (manually typed it or using a bookmark), do I still have to worry?

[leroys1000]

If the site has a cert,it is still encrypted.
The warning you showed usually shows up if a site
has purchased a certificate with extended verification,
but they have not verified all the information,
If you trust the site,then you are more than likely still safe
using it.
These messages can also sometimes be used as a tactic to
try to get the cert purchaser to buy certs from the major
higher priced sellers like verisign.

[TOGG]

If the site is supposed to be 'secure' it's usually because some potentially valuable financial or identity data is going to be supplied via that site.

That seems pretty important to me so I would definitely be wary about proceeding, even though it is likely that the checking mechanisms in most browsers will err on the side of caution.

There have been some reports recently that the bad guys have got the ability to 'break into' SSL/TLS transactions.

[jessicalore]

I think security should start with your PC. Update Windows and Antivirus. Scan PC at least once a week.

The ssl certificate check does not mean that the website is unsecured. While using this kind of secure sites look for this, so you can be sure that at least everything looks right.

1. That the URL contains the "s" like "https" not "http".
2. Look for the yellow small lock icon which means you are at least in a Connection that is Encrypted.
3. Use a more secured browser like Firefox, Opera, or Chrome.
4. If you click on the lock icon, you can check that the certificate has been issued and verified by a network company.