In this section:

• Default security
• Protocols
• Certificates

Default security

Flock provides you with up-to-date security automatically. Most people will find the default security settings sufficient. If you are interested in fine tuning Flock's security settings, you can do so from the Security tab in the Preferences window.

To access Flock's security settings

1. Open the Options or Preferences window.
   How you access the window depends upon your operating system.
   • If you are using Windows, open the Tools menu and choose Options.
   • If you are using Linux, open the Edit menu and choose Preferences.
   • If you are using Mac OS, open the Flock menu and choose Preferences.
2. In the Preferences window, click the Advanced tab.
3. Click the Encryption tab.

The Security settings are broken into two sections: Protocols and Certificates.

Protocols

Under Protocols, you can:

• Use SSL 2.0 Specifies whether you want to send and receive secured information through SSL2 (Secure Sockets Layer Level 2), the standard protocol for secure transmissions. All secure web sites support this protocol.
• Use SSL 3.0 Specifies whether you want to send and receive secured information through SSL3 (Secure Sockets Layer Level 3), a protocol that is intended to be more secure than SSL2. Some web sites may not support this protocol. If you select this option, Flock will attempt to use SSL3 whenever possible and will default to SSL2 if necessary.
• Use TLS 1.0 Specifies whether you want to send and receive secured information through TLS (Transport Layer Security), an open security standard similar to SSL3 (Secure Sockets Layer). Some web sites may not support this protocol.

Certificates

A certificate is like a digital proof of identity for a web site. Certificates are used to track the identity of a web site, and to enable strong encryption of data between Flock and the web site you are viewing.

Under Certificates, you have these options:

• When a web site requires a certificate When a web site requests a secure connection, Flock automatically uses an appropriate certificate. If you wish to manually choose a certificate (for example, if you wish to use a certain type of encryption instead of what is automatically selected), select "Ask me every time" and you'll be in complete control of which certificates you use while browsing.
• View Certificates Click this button to view stored certificates, import new certificates, and back up or delete old certificates.
• Revocation Lists Flock can use Certificate Revocation Lists (also known as CRLs) to ensure that your certificates are not invalid. Click the Revocation Lists button to manage the CRLs installed on your computer.
• Verification OCSP (Online Certificate Status Protocol) is a way to validate your certificates every time they are viewed or used. Flock does not use OCSP by default, but if you want to enable it you can do so here. You will most likely only need to change this if your Internet environment requires it.
• Security Devices Security devices can encrypt and decrypt connections and store certificates and passwords. If you need to use a security device other than the one in Flock, click the Security Devices button.