== HTTPS enabled by default for logged-in users on Wikimedia sites ==
Today, August 28, the Wikimedia Foundation is making a change to the
software that powers the Wikimedia projects: By default, all logged-in
users will now be using HTTPS to access Wikimedia sites. What this does
is encrypt the connection between the Wikimedia servers and the user's
browser so that the information sent between the two is not readable by
anyone else. This is in response to the recent concerns over the privacy
and security of our user community, and we explained the rationale for
this change in our post about the future of HTTPS at Wikimedia[0].
===What this means for you ===
How this works is simple: If a user wants to log in, they will be
redirected to use HTTPS for the login, thus keeping their username and
password secure. After they are logged in, they stay on the HTTPS
version of the Wikimedia site they are using.
=== Excluded Countries ===
Some users live in areas where HTTPS is not an easy option, most times
because of explicit blocking by a government. At the request of these
communities, we have made an explicit exclusion for users from those
affected countries. Simply put, users from China and Iran will not be
required to use HTTPS for logging in, nor for viewing any Wikimedia
project site
===Disabling===
Are you having a slow or unreliable experience while browsing Wikimedia
sites over HTTPS? Then you can turn HTTPS off in your user preferences,
under the "User profile" tab: Uncheck "Always use a secure connection
when logged in". You will need to log out and log in again for the
preference to take effect. But remember, you will still need to log in
using the secure HTTPS process.
===HELP!===
For further details, please see the HTTPS[1] page on Meta-Wiki, which is
available in several languages.
Are you unable to log in and edit a Wikimedia wiki after this change?
Please contact the Wikimedia Foundation Operations team via any means
you find comfortable, including this blog post's comments section, on
IRC in the #wikimedia-operations channel, or via the https(a)wikimedia.org
email address.
Greg Grossmeier
[0]
http://blog.wikimedia.org/2013/08/01/future-https-wikimedia-projects/
[1]
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/HTTPS
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