By Sharon Florentine
Managing a site that’s rich with media content – video, audio, applications, high-resolution images – can be challenging enough without the added strain of security concerns. Content Delivery Networks (CDNs), by their very nature are widely distributed, and thus can protect against certain common security threats, but not all. For example, CDNs are increasingly used to guard highly trafficked sites against distributed denial of service (DDOS) attacks.
However, many organizations are still concerned about the integrity and privacy of data as it travels from a CDN to a user. If security is a major concern for your organization, then you probably shouldn't use a public CDN. "When a remote file is called, information about the referrer is also sent. Remotely-hosted JavaScript libraries are particularly risky since the code could be modified to collect data about your users or systems," according to Craig Buckler, writing at sitepoint.com.
But there are ways to mitigate the security risks and still take advantage of the benefits of a CDN. Now, Rackspace’s Cloud Files CDN supports the ability to run SSL delivery (HTTPS sites) over a content delivery network, removing yet another security headache.
SSL delivery encrypts your data the entire time it’s in transit, from the origin servers, through the CDN and out to a user’s Web browser. And, as Rackspace explains, you can choose to serve your content over SSL on a per-object basis simply by using an SSL URL instead of a traditional CDN URL.
Customers that interface with the Rackspace Cloud Files API will receive both a traditional URL to deliver files via the CDN as well as a SSL URL. Using the URL labeled “X-CDN-SSL-URL” will allow you to securely deliver your content.
In addition, Rackspace explains, customers managing Cloud Files can use SSL encryption by using the Cloud Control Panel to make a few simple changes. First, Replace the "http" tag in your CDN URL with "https." Then, simply replace the "r00" portion of the URL with "ssl," and you’re all set – now you can serve content over SSL, and ensure that data is secure.
Managing a site that’s rich with media content – video, audio, applications, high-resolution images – can be challenging enough without the added strain of security concerns. Content Delivery Networks (CDNs), by their very nature are widely distributed, and thus can protect against certain common security threats, but not all. For example, CDNs are increasingly used to guard highly trafficked sites against distributed denial of service (DDOS) attacks.
But there are ways to mitigate the security risks and still take advantage of the benefits of a CDN. Now, Rackspace’s Cloud Files CDN supports the ability to run SSL delivery (HTTPS sites) over a content delivery network, removing yet another security headache.
SSL delivery encrypts your data the entire time it’s in transit, from the origin servers, through the CDN and out to a user’s Web browser. And, as Rackspace explains, you can choose to serve your content over SSL on a per-object basis simply by using an SSL URL instead of a traditional CDN URL.
Customers that interface with the Rackspace Cloud Files API will receive both a traditional URL to deliver files via the CDN as well as a SSL URL. Using the URL labeled “X-CDN-SSL-URL” will allow you to securely deliver your content.
In addition, Rackspace explains, customers managing Cloud Files can use SSL encryption by using the Cloud Control Panel to make a few simple changes. First, Replace the "http" tag in your CDN URL with "https." Then, simply replace the "r00" portion of the URL with "ssl," and you’re all set – now you can serve content over SSL, and ensure that data is secure.
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Sharon Florentine is a freelance writer who covers everything from data center technology to holistic veterinary care and occasionally blogs about Rackspace CDN.
